Like a Line Drive!
by LightningKimba
Summary: A humorous story of parodies, love, power, and the gods themselves... This is the tale of the many trainers that inhabit the Pokémon World, all on their quests to be the best of whatever their goal is...
1. The End To A Boring Life

Lesson 1 - The End to a Boring Life

There was the sound of heavy breathing, as well as the sound of moving feet, slamming on the ground. Particles of sweat dripping off, hitting the ground like raining pins. The movement of limbs brushing up against polyester gave off a distinct sound, as if someone was in a haste to go somewhere, a place of safety and solace.

This all came from a young man, appearing to be around eighteen years of age, with his black hair flowing with the wind. His black shoes appeared to be relatively fresh and clean, and his white T-shirt and blue jeans' original colors were faded away, perhaps from the sweat he continued to profuse.

Behind him, were two other men, who were much older than the teen. They were balding, and wore red jackets with a strange insignia on it, and a black t-shirt. As well, they wore long camouflage pants with bulging pockets, different pairs of headphones, gray for the man closer to the road, and black for the more fiery of the duo.

"Hey! Get back here!" said the man on the left, whose own headphones were almost disguised from whatever hair he still had.

"Yeah, what he said! You shan't escape us!" said the other, whose remainder of hair was the same shade as the teenager's.

The teen was eventually led into dead end. His brown skin was covered in a thin film of his own sweat. He sighed, and attempted to rest for a bit. He calmed down, and turned around, knowing he'd have to face up against his pursuers. He tried to remember how he got into this situation, but his time to think was interrupted by…

"Hah! We have you now!" yelled both of the men, as they threw a small, red and white colored ball on to the hard pavement.

The balls opened, and a stream of light poured out. Something started to appear through the light, and the teen was hardly impressed at all.

"Great. You're gonna use those li'l monsters called 'Pokémon', am I right?" question the adolescent, with a rather sarcastic tone. He saw the form of the pokémon he was talking about, the form of a black dog, with skulls on its back as if it were armor. Both of their ears twitched, as they growled in a low tone.

"Shut it, William!" yelled the man at the right. He seemed to be easily aggravated, and his expression changed to a fierce gladiator, but his partner eased him.

"William, you took the Snag Machine, didn't you?" said the man on the left, with a voice that sounded as calm as the sound of waves of the sea.

"Uh… I only touched the thing. The alarm went off, and it kinda disappeared." replied William, backing up just a bit more, and took a small stance afterwards.

"He's lying!" yelled the man on the left, as he immediately commanded his own pokémon to unleash a technique.

You see, in this world, many humans use these creatures called Pokémon often for battle. It is a general sport that both children and adults spend their time doing out of fun. Who would not want to use their cherish partners in a fun game?

It is rare, however, that a pokémon would ever strike a human, under any circumstances. In today's society, it has become a hushed taboo for pokémon to attack humans, and is quite strange for such events to happen.

William somewhat foresaw this event, as he leapt over the flames that rushed forth from the two dog-like pokémon. 'Heh… They fell for it,' thought William in his mind, as he managed to dash away from the creature's flames, and pounced on the man on his right. "Heh! How are you gonna attack me now?" he proclaimed.

The man with the grey headphones backed off, as his black little dog pokémon growled under his breath. "Tch! You win this round!" The duo fled, with their partner pokémon by their side.

William dusted himself, and dashed off, through the city. It was looming towards night, and his already low vitality diminished quickly. 'I want to live…', he thought, but his legs felt like they were on fire, and he could not move them. He eventually collapsed, after running at least a block, and seemed to be in such pain…

… In a rusty cell in a jail room, erupted a rather strange scream. Deep inside the innards of this room, were the worst of the worst villains to ever arrive in this city. Okay, maybe not! This jail homes criminals, yes, but it appears that many of the individuals that have entered this depressing residence really just happened to commit minor offenses, and it's best to use what you got, no matter how small the offense, no?

"Great…" William woke up, feeling around his surroundings, "How 'n the world did I end up here?," he sighed, noticing the darkness that surrounded him. "Just one moment I was looking at some device, and…"

Before he could finish his reassurance, the boy was interrupted by a rather metallic sound. At first, William paid little attention to it. He simply went on to falling on his back, feeling the firm comfort of the cushion he was on, and started staring at the ceiling. He could barely tell where he was, or why he was even there. After a minute, the sound emerged again, but much louder. Eventually, William dared to find out what the sound was, lifted himself out of his "comfort zone", and walked towards where he heard the sound.

A booming cry woke forth, and William was pushed back into the opposite wall. He felt as if blood was rushing towards his back, but he struggled, and managed to get his hands onto the ground, and crawled towards the hole. Someone's voice started to speak.

"Do you wish to escape?" it boomed, with a hint of wisdom.

"Uh… Who are you?" William questioned, completely puzzled by the situation he was in.

"A person, with a proposition for you. Do you wish for freedom, or death? You shouldn't keep Ming-Ming waiting, she might bite you as punishment." the voice answered, with a blunt tone.

"Ming-Ming…?" The name sounded familiar, but he tried to forget about it. His troublesome memory was the cause of this enormous problem, he believed, he simply tried his best to forget all about the name. Instead, he focused his attention on the deal the voice was trying to make. He assumed the voice's owner was just trying to be dramatic, as the young boy just could not see what he thought was an aging man that had that strange an accent.

"Kid, you had enough, didn'tja? I'll be nice and play along, as long as you seek out your own truth…" Rolled out from the hole, was a ball. William, noticing the color scheme of it and the strange glaring eyes that it had, quickly recognized it as some specie of pokémon, though he could not recall its name. He just noted the color scheme might have been the exact color of the balls the men carried earlier.

The pokémon lit up in a glow of white, and William jumped back at the first moment possible. Soon, the pokémon traded away its own life force, evident from its white glow, and unleashed a tremendous amount of explosive energy from its body, destroying the apparent stone walls behind it.

When William got up, he saw that there were guards already at the scene. They had their nightsticks at the ready in their arms and were ready to knock William "to sleep". He could see that these guards appeared as if they were quite diligent with their job.

The boy knew that his only hope of escaping was to fight, yet… His mind went back on to what the old man said about Ming-Ming. To him, the name just sounded so familiar. No matter what he did, the name just kept coming back to him, with its air of nostalgia.

William leapt, as if he were a feral wolf, and struck the guards with his fists and his feet. As he went his way through them, avoiding their weapons and striking primarily at their legs, hoping to knock them off their balance, he noticed that in the cell next to him, there was only a skeleton.

To further his surprise, he caught the glimpse of a large, muscle-bound man that had a wild, brown mustache. His own red jacket appeared to be a size too small, as it was popped open to reveal his cut chest. His eyes stared, and pierced straight into William's heart. "So… You're the one who defeated my grunts, eh?" he started, and paced in his dark boots, as his long, camouflage pants started to make a scratching sound, "Well… I am Gonzap. And I am not allowing you to leave this facility."

'This is ridiculous! What the hell is so special about one black arm glove, anyway?' William quickly dove to the left of Gonzap, avoiding his big, powerful grip, and dashed off into the city. He leapt over trashcans, as the metal containers themselves met with the Gonzap's rage, and were thrown far across to the side.

When it came to running, William knew that it would be fantasy to avoid Gonzap like this, but eventually he hatched a plan. He did not know if the man was dim or simply trying to be "noble", but he noticed how there was not any trash cans thrown at him. From this, he assessed that if Gonzap did not even realize that he could throw said objects (And considering his physique, the boy knew that the man would have no trouble doing this) and capture the boy, how far could this guy's naivety be, then? William took a quick turn, managing to grab a nearby store sign, placed the sign itself on a nearby building, and hid just next to the building, keeping himself quiet.

Gonzap, with his immense strength, did pursue William up until he noted the "store" in front of him, confused as where the boy could have headed to. He first punched the door down, shocking William, who was still silent. After a quick survey of the inside, Gonzap decided that William finally was out of his reach, for now. He had no choice but to turn back, and rally his subordinates to fight another day.

When William heard Gonzap's boots finally leave, he peered out of the alley he was in, careful not to look too suspicious. He walked out, thinking the close was clear, until he met up with a young man who appeared slightly older than him. The curly locks that person had gave him a casual look, that fact bolstered from his blue vacation shirt, red tie, and his long beige slacks.

"Hello! The name's Bill!" the person said, extending his hand out to William. Apparently, he believed that William tried to bump into him, before simply taking his rounds around the city.

"Uh…" was all William could manage, he was not used to this kind of greeting, as Bill grabbed his hand, and started shaking it.

"You know, you should come to my house 'n meet my parents!" Bill finished, and walked William to his house, on the other side of city, despite the fact William was reluctant to go.

Bill's house looked similar to many of the houses in the city, which were all colored in a gold hue. William kept imagining Bill's family talking in the same manner he does: a family of casual-wearing hicks with that weird funny accent.

Instead, the thought was proven incorrect. Bill's family was actually rather polite and cheerful. However, in the back of William's mind, he left as if there was an inconsistency somewhere with Bill's parents.

"Hi! You must be Bill's friend, William, right?" said an older woman, which William assumed was Bill's mother. She was wearing a yellow dress, with violet flowers decorated on to it. As well, she gave an air of calm and serenity.

'… Wow, what a surprise', William sarcastically thought. Bill's dad was in a lab coat, sitting silently at the dinner table, showing off his long jeans on the table. Even from seeing Bill's parents, William still had a nagging feeling that there was an oddity in the room.

While Bill's mother stepped out of the living room to William assumed would be the kitchen to cook up dinner, a young girl poked William's arm with a ball similar to the ones carried by his pursuers.

"Here. My brother calls it an Eevee," she said, with a timid tone, sucking the side of her thumb. One may assume that she was Bill's sister, judging from her young age, and the fact that she did appear to live in Bill's home.

"Uh… I don't 'do' pokémon, sorry." William replied, trying to be sincere without showing any of his malice.

"But don'tcha know, William?" interrupted Bill, with his odd accent, "Eevee are a kind of special pokémon. It could evolve into seven different forms!"

"I stand by what I said." William stayed adamant about his thoughts.

"Take it, it'll serve you well. I mean, I have many of 'em, and you seem like decent folk. It's perfectly fine for you to keep."

"But that doesn't make sense. You can look at anyone and think they're good on the outside, but don't you think that some of those 'good guys' really have evil intentions on the inside?"

"It's not like they're going anywhere." Bill shrugged his shoulders. "Like I said, you don't seem the type to harm people, and I think that this Eevee would be a nice addition to anyone's party."

William remembered the term "party" from somewhere. It reminded him of a time where he battled against a bespectacled young man who, for some reason, was accompanied by a snake-like pokémon…

Bill placed the small ball into William's hand, and showed him to another room, which was filled with clothes of all sorts. After about an hour, William was dressed in new clothes, a gray t-shirt, black shorts, and wore his signature black shoes, clean and fresh.

The boy eventually left Bill's house, waving bye to the sudden hospitality he was offered. He found it quite strange, as he already became used to the fights he had to go through just to get to where he was today, barely living. He was hit by another stroke of nostalgia, about having a small kitten-like pokémon. He remembered the two of them fighting, yet loved the company of each other.

As he walked around the city, looking for a place to stay, he assumed, from the color of most of the buildings, that he was currently in Goldenrod City, a city known for its casino, its mall, and even how large and glorified its own Pokémon Center was.

Luckily, he noticed that the city's Pokémon Center was so close to him, noting the signature red roof and the "P.C." sign right on the right of the front of the building.

Upon entering, the teenager felt a sense of grief inside him. Most of the passerby had one thing on their mind: Pokémon. He had on his left discussion about the tactics and strategies in battling, while on his right, how to groom them, and make their fur glisten and shine like glitter. After walking a bit, he saw that a nurse was walking towards him, and, with a smile, sweetly started a conversation.

"Oh? Are you new here, young man? You appear foreign." she said, with a hint of grace.

"Are you saying that because of my black skin?" replied William, somewhat confused by the blatant question.

"Hm! I bet you have a mangy pokémon, too, am I right?" it seemed apparent that the nurse' attitude flipped as gracefully as a flip of a coin.

William shrugged his shoulders, and threw down the poké ball in his hand, releasing out the silver-colored fox from it, "Is that mangy to you?"

It was as if the nurse did a complete 180 again, cooing at the sight of the small pokémon, "Oh! It's SOO cute! It's even shiny! You must be a master breeder to raise this, huh?" exclaimed the nurse, in complete awe of William's Eevee. "Oh! Did you give it a nickname? It's a cute one, right?"

William stared at the little fox. Then looked at the nurse. Her pink dress was only overshadowed by her charming smile, and cheery disposition. He even saw the nameplate that said, 'Joy'.

"Uh… It's name… Is…" William began, and started to think. The nurse kept on staring at the small Eevee, with her eyes signaling that she wanted to pet it. However, the small pokémon backed up to William's leg, becoming timid at the sight of the nurse's gaze. At that moment, he thought of the perfect name, "It's called Rydia." he finished at the nick of time.

"It's such a cute nickname! Come on, I'll show Rydia, and you of course, to your room." she bowed, with a cheery grace, and started leading the trainer to another room.

While walking, William saw that the Pokémon Center was mostly colored in strawberry and vanilla colors, which he thought was… Rather childish. He looked down at his small pokémon, who was following him by his side. He just noticed that he didn't even know the gender of the thing, and was iffy about actually checking, so he figured that he would worry about that later on.

Eventually, the nurse guided him to his room with its rather small and quaint atmosphere, similar to most hospital rooms. He noticed that there was also a silver bag in the room, just sitting on the bedspread with its own over-the-shoulder strap.

Is it me, or do these nurses always have something for new coming trainers?, he thought, as he jumped on the bed, and laid there on his back, staring at the ceiling in deep-thought. Rydia tried to jump on to the bed with her master, but to no avail. Instead, she took a small nap on the floor next to him.

After a few minutes of contemplation, he actually went ahead and unzipped the top zipper of the bag, not considering if the room he was in could possibly be someone's else room. By logic, if he were to be in someone's room, that one person would've already tried to check his room, and get his bag back, right? This made him question the ditzy-ness of the nurse that gave him this room, as if she did not know if the room already had a guest, or not.

The bag itself contained a small, black watch, made in the style of a small beetle. Judging from its appearance and texture, he believed it was of those popular trainer items, a PokéGear. He took it out of the of the bag, and open it up, just to check out its peripheral. He noticed the fact that, the PokéGear's registered to him, seeing his name as its owner, and noticing the numbers that were saved on it.

Before he could react to seeing his old friends' numbers, someone knocked on the door to his room, someone knocked on the door to his room. Judging from the light sound, he assessed that it had to be someone who was polite, perhaps even courteous. The only other person who would knock in such a manner would be a thief, and there was no doubt there would be a thief in the midst of this town.

He noted Rydia's position near the bed, and carefully, he opened the door, taking caution to whatever danger he may face.

"I have a package for a Mister… William, does that say?" a tan young girl was at the door, wearing some sort of green deliverymen outfit. From under her green cap, her bright red hair fall down to her shoulders, as she carried a small brown box in her hand.

"You sure you're not visiting the wrong Pokémon Center?" William was confused by this girl's sudden appearance, "I didn't order anything recently."

"I'm suure you did, sir! Or else I wouldn't have this job!" the girl's enthusiasm shined through, as she went inside the room without William's consent, and jumped on the bed, dropping the box on Rydia's head.

Before the young boy could even react, the girl jumped down from the bed, and tended to the small fox pokémon, "I can't believe you treated her this way!"

"That's a girl…?" William closed the door, confused by what was going on, "Wait, what do you mean? I haven't done anything to her!"

"Yes you have!" the girl held on to Rydia, who was struggling in her grip, "This poor thing just wanted a warm home, and everyone cast her aside just because she was metallic-colored, unlike her siblings! What kind of jerk are you to treat her like this?"

"… You do realize I just got the thing, right?" William walked over to the two, "Do I really have to care for her well-bein'? It's not even like I wanted to have her with me."

"… You bastard…" The girl left go of Rydia, walking to the door, with the young pokémon walking to her master's side, "You were given a chance to seek out the truth, and yet…" She shed a tear, "You wish to keep Ming-Ming and Suupuushan waiting in the dark, while you treat this gift of yours as a piece of trash…"

Before William could utter another word, the delivery girl left, leaving him with the box on the ground. He sat down on the bed, and look into Rydia's dark eyes, sighing. As of now, he was forced into this grand journey of whatever awaited his call.


	2. Preluding Dew

Lesson 2 - Preluding Dew

Man, I don't even know how to begin thi- Oh crap I didn't introduce myself last lesson, did I? Dang it! Um, well… I'm the Narrator of this fic, the most important character, EVER! … What do you mean "the protagonist is more important", Pablo? I can totally be more important, watch me!

Ahem, welcome to the world of Pok- Nah, that won't do. In this world, the thought that's on everyone's minds is simply those creatures known as Pokémon. In this age, they have became one of the most integral part of their daily lives, being either pets for children, or, as our story will truly focus on, beasts used for sport and competition.

Don't get it wrong, Pokémon love battling, especially if said Pokémon's with a partner that understands its way! Wait, I didn't go over partners, did I? Mm, well… They're mostly known as "trainers", people of varying ages who compete against others to grow stronger with their own Pokémon. Both these trainers and Pokémon come in various varieties, with the known species of Pokémon going from just 150 in one year, to over 500 in just another!

Trainers themselves, like said earlier, come in different forms. One may be a young brown haired girl with a green bandana, leaving her home region to travel across towns, with her partner gecko pokémon by her side.

Another could be a schoolboy who's tired of his dull life of going to school to do work, and back home to do more schoolwork. The minute he gets to pick his own starter pokémon, or even catch one himself without the use of one, he will leave on his own adventure, or so he thinks!

Now, the story I was talking about, and still going to, takes place within, well, why don't I let the story unfold, eh?

And so, our young protagonist slept on his soft bed, squeezing his white pillow against his cheek. He held the package given to him by the red-haired girl yesterday in his right hand, as if it were a precious gem.

Right next to him, his starter pokémon, Rydia, looked at her master sleeping. She felt something from him, a hint of… Light from him. She didn't understand it, in the young form she was in, but went along with it, by leaping in front of him, and rubbed his face with her tail.

"Mmm…?" William opened one eye, and noticed Rydia's adorable face, and turned away from her, "You need somethin' from me?"

Rydia simply mewed, wagging her tail cutely. The young teenager assumed that she wanted to play, so he got himself dressed, just before he forgot he still held the package in his hand. He sat down on the bed, tearing it open, with Rydia by his side, curiously looking at what could possibly be inside.

"… Isn't this a PokéDex?" William muttered under his breath, looking at the smooth panel of the black object he saw inside the box. There was another object, a small fiery stone, but he was not concerned with it just yet. The boy knew that the PokéDex was a symbol of a trainer, without one, most trainers would be off on a disadvantage, giving data on the various species of Pokémon in the world.

A question that's commonly asked, from what he remembered, was who updated the PokéDex's data itself. He could not remember the man's name, but he believed his name had something to do with a certain tree…

He shrugged it off, placing the PokéDex in his pocket just before he noticed… "Hold on, this silly pokémon…" William looked over at Rydia, who was rubbing against her master, "The bag I just found, and this PokéDex… Is it me, or is someone settin' me up?"

Rydia just looked up at her master, her eyes showing her loyalty, "I… Guess you'd be useful for figuring somethin' out about my life." He lifted himself out of bed, carrying his bag over his shoulder. As Rydia dropped down to the floor to her master's side, he silently thought, 'Of all people, why does someone like me have to hold on to this thing?'

As the sun's rays rained down on the city, Goldenrod itself remained true to its name. The paint and type of bricks used to create the various buildings in the city shone in bright golden corona, as the trainer walked through the town, with his silver fox pokémon by his side.

During his walk, he thought of thanking Bill's hospitality, but he remembered the sight of his sister's eyes, not appearing innocent, but… He felt an eerie aura from them. It was also strange that there was a young girl delivering his new PokéDex to him, as well as his new PokéGear that he wore on his right wrist. All these events occurred, in his opinion, from what happened to him just yesterday.

As he struggled with his thoughts, Rydia looked up at her master with concern, trying to cheer him up by rubbing up against his leg.

Annoyed, he sighed, "Rydia… Please stop. There's little you can do." As his young pokémon started to follow and fret about her master's condition, he silently walked through the city, ignoring the constant chatter of the citizens, and even the familiar voice of one of the radio personalities coming out a fair amount of PokéGears.

"Hello everyone, it's Buena!" cried out the young woman's voice, "It's time for today's password! The password is…" As she began to read off the password, listeners appeared to check their PokéGears for some kind of note application, to make note of the Japanese password, "… Hiruma! Don't forget it! I'm looking forward to meeting you guys at the Goldenrod Radio Tower! Sayonara bye-bye!"

While William was disturbed by the amount of greasy trainers that dashed towards the large blue tower in the middle of the city, there was a… What IS that? A bat? A scorpion? … Fine, it was a blue bat scorpion-like pokémon, who seemed interested in the password it just heard. It bounced off the nest it made on top of the local department store, using its bulging tail, and flew straight down into the cold pavement on accident, I hope.

While the nerdy trainers ran past the poor pokémon, leaving it to tend to its own injuries, William simply looked at it. For some reason, William felt an odd presence being emitted from it, as if… "Did I meet this thing before?" he asked himself, puzzled as to why he simply could not leave it on the ground like that.

Before the trainer or his pokémon could react, the blue bat-scorpion pokémon immediately leapt up from the impact crater it made, and held out its claws in an intimidating stance, keeping it posture up with its building tail.

Gligar, the FlyScorpion Pokémon. It flies straight at its target's face then clamps down on the startled victim to inject poison. It usually clings to cliffs. When it spots its prey, it spreads its wings and glides down to attack.

"Wait, the PokéDex works even in my pocket?" William was surprised how his own PokéDex operated in his right pocket like that, but he shook that off, "You actually think you could defeat Rydia? She's probably the strongest pokémon in this whole region!"

The bat-scorpion made an intense glare at the silver fox pokémon, putting her into a state of cowardice. As Rydia sought solace in her master, the blue pokémon chuckled at her timidity.

"I really don't think you should laugh at her, in fact…" William immediately kicked Rydia, making her body into a rather powerful projectile, knocking away the opposing pokémon easily, "That was her Silver Bullet."

Rydia ran back to her master, looking at him with tears in her eyes. William simply ignored her, and went over to the bat pokémon he just defeated. He held out his hand, appearing to be a sign of friendship.

Instead of grabbing it, the bat-scorpion pokémon smacked it away, and instead flew off to route right of William, leaving our protagonist and his young starter pokémon in the dust. The trainer chuckled a bit at this, looking down at Rydia, "… Y'think I should continue chasing the thing?"

The Eevee nodded, still with a tear in her eye. William bent down to her, and wiped her tear, sighing. He returned her into her Poké Ball, seeing the new road in his way…

Eventually, the trainer made his way to Route 34, a small, rural road, leading to what he hoped would be closer to the pokémon he just encountered. His thoughts mostly revolved around how he was going to try and figure out why he has such a strong bond with it already, all the while Rydia followed her master, trying to keep up with his bounds.

During his small trek, he made his way to a small farm-like house. He looked around at the gate, and noticed how it was styled as if it were a western ranch, seeing the small blue pond and even a swing set.

"Hello, young man," said a senior citizen, who wore a blue robe, long khaki slacks, and held a brown cane. He seemed to have a stern look in his eyes, as he sighed at William's curiosity, "Haven't seen too many kids like you on this route." He chuckled heartily, tapping his back to adjust his posture.

"Uh… Hello?" William replied, and was rather uncomfortable, seeing the old man in his state.

"Now, this is the Daycare Center. We raise the precious pokémon of trainers." the old man started, and went on, "Now, sometimes, we find an egg here, but me and my wife never quite figured out how they get there. It's a really troublesome situation, y'know sonny? I think there was a professor studying these precious eggs…"

William noticed a rather odd hole in the old man's logic. "Now, the trainers leave two pokémon here, right?" he asked.

"Yes, one male, and another, a female," the elder replied.

Just as my suspicions confirmed… William held his palm under his chin in thought, with Rydia looking at him in awe, "So you're tellin' me if I left a male pokémon and a female pokémon here, you would NOT notice what they're doing? Seems that you run a shoddy day-care center."

"H-How should I know what pokémon are doing 24 hours a day? I go to the bathroom! I might even need to go inside so that way I don't miss my radio dramas! What do you want from me, sonny boy?" the old man puffed up.

"Well, I hope to know what my pokémon are doing when I leave them in your care," William began, Rydia now blushing at what she heard from her master, "If they're doing anything like making eggs, I would at least wish to know what was going on before such an event took place."

"Harrumph! Then um…" The old man thought to himself, and hatched a plan, "Why don't you do me a favor instead of chastise my establishment: There were these two guys I saw passing by, chasing after this bat thingie. Can you please defeat them for me?"

"Um, sure I guess…" William had a sinking feeling that he has met this pokémon before.

"You should also take this egg," the old man dug into his robe, and gave the trainer a rather strange-looking egg, "It should protect you from harm."

From just looking at the egg, William knew that nothing but trouble could come from it. It looked pretty trashy, and had a rather peculiar shell, "Thanks, I guess…"

"Thank you, and come again!" the old man waved, seeing the trainer leave with the egg now in his book bag, "… I wonder if it was the right thing to do, entrusting him with that egg…"

After a small while of silence, seeing other trainers battle against each other, and others brag and rave about how powerful their raised pokémon is, he came across his target, in a rather atypical situation: It was trying to battle his way against two familiar faces.

"Hey! There's William, boss!" said one of the men, with his gray hair flaking away. His own small pokémon, a black dog with a skull on its head, stood to attention just before it tried taking a bite out of the blue Gligar.

"… It's you two." William sighed, Rydia tilting her head in curiosity on why her master felt so bored at the sight of the two, "Have you started doing petty bullying or somethin'?"

While the two discussed their topics, the small bat-scorpion pokémon kept up the defensive against the Houndour, baiting away bite after bite by using its stingers as a lure.

The man on the left of the gray-haired one chuckled, shaking his head, "That's big talk for the one who ran away from us yesterday. And oh look, you have a pokémon with you, the same type of things you hated, am I right?"

"I still do hate them; it's more of me needing them for survival. I only ran from you two since, during that moment, I knew I had few options, and running was the best one I had."

"So calculating… Should've known you were like that, however…" The gray-haired man's black dog pokémon smacked away the Bat Scorpion pokémon, "… We already called up the higher ups. Gonzap approved of this, of cours-"

A person from just behind them pushed the two men away from him, with his body covered in a rather strange platinum outfit. From just looking at his physique, William also believed he met this person before, but he just could not place his finger on who it was.

"I've come back from Hell to defeat you, William!" he pointed out, "As the powerful Commander Kyle, there's nothing you can do to hammer down my revenge!"

"… Revenge?" William tilted his own head, "I don't remember anyone swearing vengeance against me. … Weird."

"You shouldn't forget so easily!" Kyle punched his right fist into his left palm, cracking his knuckles, "This Houndour is more than enough for you!"

William yawned, "Yet it couldn't kick that little bat thing's ass. I doubt you could even come close to beating me."

"Shut up!" Kyle grunted, "Houndour, bite the crap out of that thing now!"

William simply yawned at the sight of the Gligar trying to cross its claws, as a defensive measure to avoid being brutally struck by the Houndour, "Just hit it on the head with your claw as it comes into your 'area', shouldn't be too much trouble for you…"

The Gligar followed the advice, making a quick strike on the Houndour the second the black dog pokémon bared its fangs at it.

"Now make a quick jab, and smack it away with your stinger." William appeared rather unamused by the bat-scorpion's power, while Rydia watched in awe by her master's tactical strength.

"Th-this can't be! I was supposed to win this time! I won't let you defeat me!" Kyle screamed out, throwing his arm out at William. He was surprised by the strength of the Gligar, making jabs and fakes similar to most professional boxers.

Once the bat-scorpion pokémon managed to lay the finishing blow by using its stinger, William simply uttered. "Whether you're from Hell or Heaven, I'll knock ya down." As William pointed his finger straight out at Kyle with a small chuckle, Rydia hopped at the sight of her master's victory.


	3. Through The Forest, We Go!

Lesson 3 - Through the Forest, We Go!

Today's lesson takes place between 3 and 4. Just kidding, it's really taking place with these two grunts here.

"Wh-what are we going to do? Gonzap's gonna kill us!" the normally calm gray-haired grunt was back in his easily panicked state, "We met William twice, and both times, he managed to get away from us!"

"M-maybe it's not all bad…" The black-haired grunt tried rubbing the back of his head, feeling for any gray hairs, "Gonzap is a decent guy, right? Maybe he'll let us off easy! I mean, it wasn't US that lost, just our commander!"

"But WE, as in us two, ASKED for Kyle to join us! … Though it was kind of creepy how he said that he came back from Hell to defeat William…"

"Yeah, it was, wasn't it?"

The two grunts traveled along their path, seeing only a dense fog in their way. They both tried to keep their spirits up with small talk, discussing their origins to Team Snagem, to what were their plans for the future. Throughout this long road, they began to feel that they were truly safe from harm.

That is… Until they saw what laid in front of them. Gonzap, the leader of Team Snagem, their boss, was bowing down to a young man with long, silver hair. This was the first time they saw him giving dignity to anyone else like this, as the young man callously brushed his gleaming hair.

"I… I-I…" Gonzap seemed drained of energy, simply spitting out sounds at this point.

"Come on now, I don't have much time for this." The young trainer rolled his eyes, flicking his silver hair, "I just told you all you had to do. At this point, you're literally nothing but trash."

"You can't say that about ou-"

The man waved his finger at the black-haired man, as ice started to form around his mouth, "Be careful with what you say, L'Arachel doesn't tolerate idiots."

So this fog was created by him… The gray-haired man tried his best to figure a way out of this, but alas, his thoughts fell towards desperate tactics.

"I-It's fine," Gonzap kept his body low, "It's for the best… I, Gonzap, hereby surrender Team Snagem…"

"I can't believe this…" The black-haired man attempted at running up to stop his boss, but the gray-haired man placed his arm in the way.

"… To Team Galactic." Gonzap finished, collapsing on to the ground.

"Boss!" Both of the men said, thought before they could do anything about it, the young man softly spoke.

"He's perfectly fine, I just told him what he needed to know, that's all…" The young man flicked his silver hair again, and waltzed off, with the small glimpse of a mermaid's tail behind him.

"Wh-Who was that?" the black-haired man dashed towards Gonzap's side.

"Better yet…" the gray-haired man put his palm under his chin, "What are we going to do now?"

"… You said what now?" We rejoin our protagonist in what appears to be a gate, intersecting Route 34 and I believe it's a forest…? I don't know, it has trees and stuff, and it's really dark. Anyway… William stood with the blue Gligar from before by his side, Rydia notable absent.

In front of him, stood a young girl, whose expression was filled with a sunny cheer. She stood at least a foot shorter than him, with her light brown bangs traveling towards her shoulders. A green bandana was tied around her head, as she wore an orange shirt with her black, her tight shorts overshadowed. As well, her sneakers were a light yellow, with white detailing. "Yeah, you see… It'd be best to, at all, just have one pokémon out at a time. If you had your full party out, well, that'd be dang ridiculous, huh?"

William noticed how she nervously laughed, assuming that she was trying to get a reaction from him. He sighed, "Wouldn't it be better to not have out any pokémon at all?" He looked over at the pokémon that accompanied him, "I mean, both the pokémon I have are ridiculously annoying…"

"That's not true!" the girl puffed up, grabbing the bat-scorpion pokémon and placing it by her chest, "All pokémon are amazin', no matter what they're up-bringing is!"

"… I haven't even given that thing a name yet."

"Why not give it one, mm?" the young girl petted the blue pokémon, as it squirmed to get over of her grip.

William could only remember the catchy tune from earlier, the one that had to do with that password show. "… I guess its name could be Hiruma, I dunno."

The newly named Hiruma quickly leapt out of the girl's grip, now with improved vigor. Before the two could even react, he sniffed the air, and bounced on his tail to the place where he believed the scent originated from.

"… Where's he goin'?" William muttered to himself.

"In the Ilex Forest, I assume… Maybe he smelled a snack?" she said, and walked out of the gate, into the darkness of the forest.

"Yeah, I bet that makes sense," William stepped out of the gate himself, embracing the creepy, forest-like sounds surrounding him, "Who ARE you, anyway, and why are you acting so chummy?"

"Mm? Well…" the young girl seemed surprised by William's sudden interest in her, "My name's Stephanie, but most people call me Steph, and… I just thought it'd be a good idea for us to team up, since we're both Pokémon Trainers 'n all." She smiled.

William stayed silent, turning around and ignoring Steph. "I just need to find a certain pokémon, that's all. I have no need for assistance, 'specially from a young girl like yourself."

"B-But-"

"Look." William looked straight into her green eyes, "If you don't stop following me, I swear I'll leave you as breakfast for my small Gligar, all right? I don't need your help, find someone else."

Despite William's harsh words, deep inside, Stephie felt that William was calling out to her, that he definitely needed her help. With that resolve, she proudly proclaimed in her thoughts that she would become a Pokémon Trainer in her own right, all for William to see her growth.

William eventually heard a cry in the forest, one that reminded him of a bat's squeal. He looked up, and saw… Nothing. Nothing at all. It's funny, since I thought something cool was going to happe-

Oh wait; our main protagonist just punched a tree. … I don't get it, is this supposed to be suspenseful? All this trainer is doing is- Getting Hiruma from a tree he believed he was nesting in temporarily. Well, at least it's something.

"What in the world were you doing?" the trainer interrogated, surprising Hiruma completely. He leapt out of the hand he was being held in, and started squealing about the reasons he left William.

However, our main protagonist could not understand a word this bat-scorpion was saying, as he sighed, "Just direct me to where you were going…"

Hiruma nodded, then made a salute, and bounced on his tail towards the direction he was originally going to, a small blue lake. The water coming from it appeared to sparkle within the darkness of the forest, giving off a clean, sapphire color.

"… You smelled something at a lake?" William sweatdropped at his pokémon's apparent stupidity, "What kind of food could you find here?"

Hiruma angrily pointed at the small tree in the middle of the lake, which held one small berry. When he moved his gaze towards it, he started salivating at the delicious, pink color of the berry.

"Oh, that thing." William looked over at his surroundings, "The problem is, Hiruma… I can't seem to find anything to retrieve it, unless you want me to throw you in."

Hiruma looked in shock, and bounced backwards, aghast by William's suggestion… And fell into the lake itself on accident, blubbering water from his mistake.

Before William could reach in and grab Hiruma, a small yellow Pokémon walked by, with a weasel-like form.

Buizel, the Sea Weasel Pokémon. It spins its two tails like a screw to propel itself through water. The tails also slice clinging seaweed. It inflates its flotation sac, keeping its face above water in order to watch for prey movement.

William tilted his head in confusion, still looking at the sea weasel pokémon, "It really looks more like a fox to me, what do you think Hirum- Ah crap!" William grabbed Hiruma out of the water, shocked that he forgotten about the bat-scorpion's problem.

The small Buizel looked at William itself in confusion, walking up towards him. Its eyes simply showed a neutral point of view towards him.

"Uh… Can you grab that berry for us, please?" William asked, all the while pushing water out of Hiruma's body.

The young pokémon shrugged, diving into the lake, and spun her twin tails to propel itself to the tree Hiruma sought after. From there, the pokémon launched itself out of the water, picking the berry in mid-hover.

Before any celebration could be had, an ice-like ghost pokémon came out from its hiding place inside the tree, and immediately fired a bolt of ice from its hand-like appendages.

"Wh-what the hell is that, the guardian of the lake?" William exclaimed, confused by the current events. "Err… Dammit, what should I do to that thing?"

Froslass, the Snow Land Pokémon. Legends in snowy regions say that a woman who was lost on an icy mountain was reborn as Froslass. It freezes prey by blowing its -58 degree F breath. It is said to then secretly display its prey. And… That Buizel is a girl, note the single peach-colored spot on its back, the PokéDex quipped.

"Wait, so that thing's a dead chic- There's no time to worry about that!" William regained his focus, with Hiruma looking at his enlightened trainer in awe, "Amamiya, try letting that guardian thing hit you in the hands!" William commanded, though he did not realize the name he even gave the young weasel pokémon.

The yellow weasel Pokémon placed the berry she was holding on the ground, and put up a guarding stance.

The Froslass applauded her effort with a chuckle, hovering over the young pokémon with its kimono-like body.

"Obviously she's not going to attack when Amamiya's blocking… I just wish we had some fire around here…" William then looked at Hiruma, "That's it!"

Before Hiruma could react, William grabbed the bat-scorpion pokémon like a baseball, and aimed his swing at Froslass, "Take this! The Hiruma Special!"

As Hiruma was thrown at the Froslass, his eyes filled with tears with his ignorance of what was going on, Amamiya set herself ready to face against her opponent.

The moment when Hiruma bit the Froslass' head, the Snow Land pokémon started firing its icy bolts around, some even hitting the tree it was apparently guarding. A bolt in the end struck Amamiya's hands, making her flinch in pain.

"All that's left is the Sweet Arrow!" William held out his hand, as Amamiya laid a powerful punch straight on the ghost pokémon, batting it away.

Hiruma cheered for the yellow pokémon, just before William returned the bat-scorpion. "… You wouldn't mind partnering up a tad bit, would you?"

Amamiya started at William. She remembered how William asked her to grab the berry growing by the tree she was next to, and how well he commanded her in battle… She shrugged, grabbed the pink berry that was next to her, and swam back to shore, staring at William again with her black eyes.

"I… Guess we're partners, just for now?" William nervously held out his hand, as Amamiya grabbed it and shook it. I swear she seems so familiar, as if I've battled with her before…

Rushing into his head, William remembered thoughts of facing against a large serpent, this time clearer. He remembered the serpent itself having a bladed tail, but before he could try recalling his memory further… He thought he smelled the scent of smoke.


	4. Shining Star

Lesson 4 - Shining Star

We rejoin our main protagonist, running through the dark forest that was the Ilex Forest. As he stepped on various twigs and leaves, a new partner, Amamiya the yellow Buizel, followed by his side, hurriedly dashing on her hind legs. She carried with her a prize, her small pink berry.

The scent of deep smoke was in the air… And William wished to discover its origins. "Amamiya, you'll help me out with this problem, won't you?"

Amamiya nodded, keeping up her pace. She struggled to carry the berry in her hands, careful not to look at its lovely pink color. Its appearance was enough to distract Amamiya to salivate over it.

William sighed, "Just eat the thing already…" While Amamiya chomped down on the sweet berry, smiling, the trainer finally reached a green gate. … Or it was green. The paint started to chip off and flake with a rather burnt color, as if it were a dying flower shedding away its petals.

He kicked the door open, and was taken aback by his sight: Corpses burned completely to the bone. He kept running, while Amamiya nervously followed suit. The skulls reminded the trainer of the skeleton he found in the jail, which appeared to, somehow, have a similar head structure as the one he found there. In fact, he believed all the skeletons appeared the same, without any variant in-between them.

He ran out through the exit, slamming the door down with his shoulder, and discovered a town covered in flames. The buildings, showering with a pool of fire, caught William and Amamiya in an awe-struck manner, as the two stared at the erupting inferno.

Stephie, the female trainer from earlier who wished to tag along with William, noticed his presence, but was too concerned with her own problem: She tried her best with a seagull-like pokémon to soak the flames, but to no avail. She gave it her best, and yet… It still was not enough.

William eventually came to grasp to reality, "Amamiya, try cooling off these flames!"

The command, however, fell foreign to Amamiya. She looked up at William, slightly confused. Just from feeling the heat, she knew in her head that she could not cool off the pool of flames with her strength.

The trainer could not notice this, crouching down to the yellow Buizel, "What? You can't even use Water Gun or something?" William himself was confused by Amamiya's lack of ability.

Amamiya did her best to explain her point, squirting water from her mouth onto a nearby ember. The jet of water simply evaporated on impact, leaving the ember unscathed.

"… That's strange." William lifted back up to his feet, "What kind of fire is this, not being able to be extinguished?"

"Heh, a weak trainer and his weak pokémon, both of them lacking the wits to cool down these destructive flames… You should simply let them consume your pathetic soul."

"Wh-who said that?" William believed it was the voice of a woman; however the smog and the harsh light from the inferno made it difficult for William to find anyone.

"It does not matter who I am…" the woman stepped out from the flames in front of William, surprising both him and Amamiya, with her golden eyes staring deep into them. She wore a short-hemmed black dress, with the hem line colored a dark red. She wore a short red hooded sweater over that, with black horns on the top, and a strange volcano insignia on the front, shaped like an "M".

She held out her right hand, as if it were demanding William's answer. "… Just give me that fox pokémon you're carrying with you."

Wait, could she mean…? "There's, there's no way I'm handing Rydia to you!" William backed up slightly, carefully making sure he wasn't too close to any stray embers.

"Oh, how cute. You gave it a name." The woman took a few steps closer to the trainer, dropping her arm, "Don't try protecting to it, it'll be mine eventually… William Bell!" all to point her right index finger enthusiastically at William.

"H-How did you know my name?" William accidentally singed a bit of his leg from backing up again. He edged himself into an open air, trying to look at the figure before him.

"That does not matter…" The woman stared into William's eyes, her golden glare striking fear into the trainer, "If you don't hand over the fox pokémon, I'll be forced to take action."

"… I may not care for Rydia in the slightest…" William silently muttered, "B-but… To give her to someone like you, that's something I can't allow!" Amamiya looked at her partner in awe, surprised by his resistance.

"I thought you were going to make this easy for me, but oh well…" The woman chuckled, "Guess my job'll never be easy…" She then muttered one simple name, a name that, well in my opinion, would be the scariest thing to ever be uttered in front of our main protagonist: "Keruha."

Out of the flames from behind the woman, appeared a large canine-like pokémon, with a body similar to both a tiger's and a large lion. It breathed out a small puff of flame from its maw, with regal mane appearing both beautiful and intimidating in the glow of the inferno it was in.

William's PokéDex began to chime again, however it barely managed to get its first sentence in: Arcanine, the Legendary Pokémon. Its proud and regal appearance has captured the hearts of people since long ago.

"Wh-what is that…?" William nervously looked at the Arcanine, as its eyes showed an air of regality, "A-Amamiya, it's up to you."

"You're going to send that thing out, of all things? It can't even use Water Gun." the woman sighed.

Amamiya walked into the center of the battlefield, looking up at her opponent. Deep inside, she was shaking, but she tried to keep up a neutral appearance.

"Flamethrower." Keruha did as instructed, as it unleashed a stream of fire from its mouth straight at the young weasel pokémon.

"Amamiya, use Water Gun, let's go!" William commanded, but immediately noticed the difference in power between Amamiya and Keruha: As Amamiya sprayed out as much water as she could from her mouth, it barely made way to even defend her against Keruha's assault of flames crashing down on her.

"Ah, so its name has 'Ama' in it, which means 'heaven'… That's where she's going to go next" the woman chuckled at this, "Use Extremespeed to get within range, and destroy it with Fire Fang."

If I don't act fast, Amamiya'll… She isn't even my partner and she's losing like this! William quickly grabbed Hiruma's poké ball, and released him out, preparing to throw him, "H-How about the return of the Hiruma Special!"

This effort was in vain, however. As William threw Hiruma, the poor bat-scorpion pokémon was smacked away by what seemed to be an unknown force, just before he hit Keruha.

Before William could utter a word, the force was revealed to be the guardian of the lake William just fought earlier, the kimono-clad Froslass. During this point of time, Amamiya managed to roll out the way of Keruha's fiercely burning fangs, but not without having her back singed, and her having to wince in pain.

"Yukie, please return now." the woman looked at what seemed to be her own Snow Land pokémon, as the ghost pokémon simply looked at the pokémon she smacked away, and disappeared from view through the flames, though the sly scent of a tear could be smelled, if one was willing to focus on it.

I can't lose now… Not when someone like Rydia's on the line… William remembered the words he was told by the delivery girl, about how Rydia was supposedly abandoned, 'If that's her origin… I must protect her at all costs…!', "Hiruma, Amamiya! Do whatever you can to stop that thing!"

"It's no use," the woman held her hand out, and let Keruha strike Hiruma over at Amamiya, injuring the both of them, "Both of your pathetic pokémon are in range of my attack." She yawned, slightly annoying William, and went on, "End this battle with Fire Blast; this has went on long enough."

As Keruha started to ignite his natural processes, the flames inside his mouth growing and starting to sizzle more and more, Hiruma panicked, squeezing Amamiya's body. Amamiya tried to keep a silent neutral viewpoint of the situation, but the only product she could determine from this match-up was one thing: Certain death.

William felt this, as well. This feeling felt… Nostalgic to him, as if he was in this situation before. He just could not see the sight of Hiruma and Amamiya, two pokémon he partnered up with just recently, burned alive like this. He just could not stand the idea of him being the cause of their deaths, and also the fact that… He could not defend Rydia, who is simply an innocent Eevee…

That's when the idea hit him: He still had the ability to protect Rydia, it would just cost him something dear to not only him, but as well as most people cling to when they're at their end. He dashed out to the field, spreading his arms out to defend both Hiruma and Amamiya.

"… Hm? You wish to end your life? Makes stealing 'Rydia' easier for me to do…" the woman shrugged her shoulders, and let Keruha unleash his attack…

… That's it? That's how you're ending the lesson? But it's way too short! This isn't fair, where's the rest of my cue cards? You're going to look for them, Pablo? Well, that's cool 'n all, thanks budd- What do you MEAN it'll take a while? Dam- Err… Hmm, I guess I can stall for now.

Well, death is the termination of the biological functions that define a living organism. The word refers both to a particular event and to the condition that results thereb- Wait, what am I saying? William can't be dead! This is the fourth lesson of the series, and he's already going down? I… I can't believe this! This can't happen, can it? Oh, thanks for the cue cards NOW, Pablo! Man, I'm in so much grief now.

William kept his eyes open, looking at the danger in front of him. He already made up his mind; he was going to protect the pokémon that followed him up to this point with his life. All he wanted… Was to spend time with them just a little longer. For some reason… He felt a "wave" when he's around them, a "wave" of nostalgia. This strange oddity was what kept William on his path, even if it were for just a day.

Suddenly, something kicked William out of the way. To him, it felt like a pair of legs, as if someone dropped kicked him, but he couldn't sense who it was who shoved him out the way, just that it felt like an animal dropped kicked him.

From the corner of his eye, he could barely make out the creature. He thought it looked like a fox, or even a large kitten, as he watched it fall to the ground, and created a large barrier of ice in front of it.

As soon as Keruha launched his attack, a devastating blaze of fire in the form of a Japanese character, it was completely nullified by the wall of ice, keeping both the mysterious creature, and both Amamiya and Hiruma, safe.

"… Looks like things can get interesting now." the woman mused, with Keruha simply looking at the small creature. He was somewhat unmoved by its efforts, rather it focused its attention more on protecting his trainer.

As Hiruma and Amamiya looked on from afar, looking at the two pokémon stare down, William noticed, as he lifted himself up, he knew this pokémon.

In at moment, memories quickly rushed into his mind, about his childhood with a certain pet, the adventures and dangers they got into… All of these memories fell into view, and flew off, as William awoke a new power within himself.

He simply muttered, looking at the fox-like pokémon, "… You're Ming-Ming, correct?" He felt as if he knew the pokémon for ages, staring at her snow white body.

The small pokémon mewed, looking at her opponent with a prideful smirk. The air around her, despite the raging inferno she was in, felt cool, as if the North wind was solely carried on her person.

"A'ight then…" William's mind felt clearer, as he focused at the battle at hand, "To actually go through with the attempt of stealing Rydia… I cannot allow that! Ming-Ming, create your finest blades!"

"… 'Create'?" The woman was confused by this at first, but then noticed that Ming-Ming was creating swords made of ice. Keruha himself seemed surprised by this skill.

"In her Nebbia Zone…" William began, as Hiruma and Amamiya both noticed the fine crafted weapons Ming-Ming made seemingly out of thin air, "Ming-Ming may create anything out of ice, minding she has enough cold air."

"But what col- Oh my…" the young woman then realized what she was dealing with, "… Even if that is a Glaceon, she has a distinct type disadvantage. Keruha, end this with your Fire Fang."

As Keruha leapt into Ming-Ming's range, the small Glaceon quickly let the weapons jettison at Keruha. While the large Legendary pokémon managed to leap out of the way of their paths, one of the blades managed to graze Keruha, making him grip down on the dirt-filled ground in slight pain.

"Don't let up; show that thing your skills!" William cried out, as Ming-Ming continued to create not just swords, but spears and axes as well.

"This is getting boring," the mysterious woman sighed, "Flare Blitz."

Keruha, after playing the defensive role of dodging Ming-Ming's commanding range of field attacks, finally made a proud stance, as his body erupted in a fiery aura. While he prepared his attack, the rest of Ming-Ming's arsenal of icy weapons failed to get past the new burning armor Keruha was cloaked in.

"Counterattack with your Blizzard!" William yelled, as Ming-Ming cheerfully created a barrier of ice in front of her, serving as a defense measure just in case she could not finish charging her next attack.

Hiruma and Amamiya could sit on the sidelines, seeing the two pokémon charge what appeared to be their strongest attacks.

Similar to a match to a strike box, Keruha pounced forth at Ming-Ming, as the fox-cat pokémon unleashed a whirlwind of deadly weapons from her fort of an icy barrier. The scene of this the stuff of legends, man! I mean, I can't believe this, two strong pokémon going at each other like this? It's amazing! It's impressive! It-

"Hello?" the woman interrupted my excitement because she got a phone call! I'm miffed! "… I see. Keruha, stop."

Keruha managed to break into Ming-Ming's barrier, but stopped just before he landed on her body. Just from looking down, he noticed the small pokémon was looking into his eyes, as he was staring into hers. For seemed like a millennia, the two pokémon blushed in each other's presence.

And of course, since you guys can't speak Pokémon, I shall translate for you, hooray! 'I… I'm sorry, but for today, I must leave with Ojou-sama. Our battle shall continue another day.' Keruha appeared to regret saying those words, but at the same time, he felt that it would be most foolish to disrespect his own trainer.

'That… That would be nice.' Ming-Ming's hubris was replaced with a sense of insecurity, simply blushing more at Keruha's polite nature.

"Keruha, return." as soon as the woman said those words, the large Legendary pokémon leapt into the fire, disappearing without a trace, "It appears, for now, you're off the hook. Too bad, I was looking forward to destroying you and nipping that fox from you." She turned away, and began to walk into the flames.

William saw that the woman was about to leave, and finally, after a long moment of contemplation, yelled out, "What is your name anyway?"

"… Why does that matter?" William could have sworn that she giggled.

"If you really enjoy this battle, you should be able to respect me, right? Like in honorable battles, the two opponents always tell each other their names, further respecting their power." Hiruma looked at his trainer in awe, surprised by his knowledge.

The woman appeared to place her finger to her mouth, and eventually said, "… I'm Riyu. For now, I'll be your worse nightmare…"

As Riyu stepped into the flames, seemingly disappearing within it, William dropped to his knees, sighing. As quickly as this new power of his arrived, a large amount of it flew from his mind, with the cool breeze. He could only sigh with relief that he was able to live just an iota longer.

He returned Hiruma, and noticed that Amamiya was right in front of William, staring at him with strangely neutral eyes.

"… You are pretty ordinary, in a nice way, Amamiya…" William grinned, with a slight chuckle, "Do you… Do you wish for me to catch you?"

Amamiya appeared to have no qualms about this, as she took one of William's poké balls, and captured herself, entering his party all by her own volition.

This left Ming-Ming, who waltzed towards her trainer, smiling. 'All he has to do now is capture me, and we could return to our journey.~'

William got back to his feet, and looked at Ming-Ming, confused, "… What do you want?"

Ming-Ming blew a bolt of icy wind at William's rear, nearly causing him frostbite, and threw her nose into the air obnoxiously.

"Goddammit, why'dja do THAT?" William rubbed his posterior sorely, "I thought you were supposed to be nice, not try 'n kill me!" William noticed that he was still surrounded by fire, and realized that Ming-Ming had to be plenty powerful in her own right to fight well in this environment. "… I would go, but it would take some careful maneuvering to get past this fire…"

Ming-Ming rolled her eyes, chuckling. She blew a large breath of chilly wind, completely blowing away all the fire within range, eventually revealing the destruction that was laid on to the town William was currently in.

William could not say a word, seeing how destroyed the town was, with its singed buildings, burned-to-cinders trees, and the dried ground he was standing on. Sighing, he shook his head, trying to relive himself of frustration.

Ming-Ming walked in front of William, and pointed to his belt, cutely mewing at him. 'C'mon, I won't hurt you, 'owner'.' She thought in a sing-song tone.

William looked on the small pokémon, noticing the way she was staring on his belt. He realized she was pointing at the poké balls dangling from it, "… You want to join my team, too?"

Ming-Ming nodded, mewing again as cutely as she could.

However, William completely ignored her, walking away from her. As he walked through to the next route, Ming-Ming looked at him go, annoyed. She noticed in the corner of her eye a small poké ball, what she felt was conveniently located for her to use. She picked it up with her mouth, and ran up to William again, mewing at her discovery in front of him.

"… You're that serious about this?" William looked down at Ming-Ming, as she nodded, her tail cutely wagging. He took the poké ball from her, and pressed the button, capturing the small Fresh Snow pokémon.


	5. Golden Fireworks

Lesson 5 - Golden Fireworks

We open today's lesson in a rather small, forest-filled room. Deep inside this natural garden, our main focus is what most trainers refer to as a "Gym Battle". From its very definition, it's a- … Maybe I should let our focus for today's lesson take over.

"Let's go, Dewdano!" Stephie commanded, dashing across the center of what appeared to be a synthetic arena with adjustments to make it appear more natural, with its beautiful sod and plant life thriving well in this environment.

Her pokémon, Dewdano, was a small gecko-like pokémon, dashing in front of its opposition, a green mantis pokémon. The owner of this large mantis pokémon was her opponent, a rather feminine person, dressed in a green camper outfit, complete with green shorts and a green shirt. The young trainer calmly assessed her situation.

After figuring out a solution, she shook her head, as her violet locks shuffled with it, and calmly said, "Scyther, please use Leer now."

As soon as the command was uttered, the mantis pokémon made a glaring look, spooking Stephie's gecko pokémon in mid-attack.

Before the young girl could get a word in, the violet-haired camper cheerfully instructed, "Now use Quick Attack to get behind that Treecko, and strike immediately with your scythes!"

As the mantis pokémon rushed behind Treecko, Stephie yelled out, "Dewdano, use your tail! Hurry!"

I've already analyzed that scenario, the camper's mind began to spring into process, From what I've researched, Scyther's speed is fast enough to outrun such pokémon as those Hoenn starters Birch gives away.

… However, the camper noticed a sweat bead from her Scyther, That girl's Wingull did a lot of damage on Scyther alone, and it single-handedly took out my cocoon pokémon. They were meat shields, yes, but at the same time… This girl's proving her worth.

As Dewdano swung his tail out at the large Scyther, the mantis pokémon managed to swing its right scythe, and struck Dewdano's tail during its attack, making the gecko spin in mid-air. Before Dewdano could try using the momentum to his advantage, the Scyther quickly struck with its left scythe, knocking the gecko pokémon to its right.

"I've already isolated the optimal strategy to take you down," the girl nodded her head, and whipped out a large bug-catching net, and started jabbing with it as if it were a spear, "Now Scyther, go in for the final blow!"

"Dewdano, do something!" Stephie cried out, but her gecko pokémon laid on the sod, struggling against its wounds to try to get up, as the Scyther continued to pursue its attack…

After what appeared to be an escape from Hell, we rejoin our main protagonist, still somewhat distressed by the recent events he faced. As he walked down a clear path away from the cindered town behind him, a nagging feeling crawled around behind his thoughts.

He looked at Ming-Ming's poké ball, one of the recent pokémon he's obtained in this journey of his. He remembered the words the old man told him just a few days ago, "You shouldn't keep Ming-Ming waiting…" he fell silent, and stopped in his tracks. Was Ming-Ming truly watching me…? William thought, placing her poké ball on his belt.

Rydia soon sent herself out of her poké ball, walking all the way to the front of William, smiling cheerfully.

William looked at the small pokémon, somewhat annoyed by her cheerful behavior. "… You do realize that someone's huntin' ya down, right…?"

As William walked away from the Eevee, Rydia saw in awe the destruction that was laid down on the city behind her. Her bright black eyes lit up, as she stared at how charred the city has become.

"… I can't protect you, Rydia. I'm sorry…" William walked away from Rydia, keeping his down.

Before he managed to even take a few steps, Rydia walked in front of him, with a stern glare. She tried her best to prove she should be with William, by standing right in front of him, trying her best to keep a strong look.

However, William simply kicked her out the way, punting her a few feet, and continued to walk, silently.

Rydia, who was kicked into a nearby shrub, ran back to her master, staring into his eyes. All she wanted was to be a loyal pokémon to William…

… On the other hand, William could not see himself with Rydia by his side, having to protect her again from the woman he faced before. "Rydia, please… There's no way you can believe in someone like me!"

Rydia held her ground, staring into her master's eyes again. Deep in her heart, she felt that she had to stay with William. To her, William was someone she simply could not leave behind, especially from the hidden "warmth" she felt from him…

"… I just got you from that guy's little sister," William looked annoyed at Rydia, "That delivery girl thinks I'll be a prick to you, and she's right: How can I protect someone like you? It's impossible, just-"

Before William could finish, he saw that Rydia was rubbing his leg, wagging her tail cutely. "… Fine, I'll try my best, if that makes you happy."

When Rydia heard those words, she jumped back to in front of her master, smiling. As William kneeled down to his knees and pet Rydia, he still had a few thoughts in the back of his head. Why did Riyu need to burn down that town, and why… William looked at Rydia's eyes again, sparkling in the sun, … Is this pokémon trying to bond with me, of all people?

He returned Rydia into her poké ball, as he scaled along a large mountain, careful not to trip on any of the rocks or to lose his footing. After this long trek, he confirmed from his PokéGear that he was now on Route 32, apparently a route that was a popular fishing location because of its lakebed. He also noticed a metal track across the plains of the route, just above the trees themselves.

He leapt off the mountain, dashing over to the lakebed, seeing the fishermen have a good time with their respective hauls.

"Hey Justin, you caught anything besides Magikarps yet?" laughed one of them, careful to not let go of his fishing rod as he laughed at his friend's skill.

"Shut up Ralph!" Justin appeared rather riled up, as just behind him, his haul of what apparently were Magikarps simply hopped about, gasping the air they were breathing, "I'll show the both of you!"

"Just let him be…" the third fisherman said, sighing, "Out of the three of us, Justin here's the one due to catch something amazin', y'know?"

"Yeah, I'll see it when I believe it, Henry." Ralph chuckled again, "It's not like you guys'll ever beat my awesome Goldeen!"

As the fishermen continued talking amongst themselves, William walked over to the lakebed, as Ming-Ming sent herself out, with a clever smile on her face.

"H-Hey guys! I caught something!" Justin greedily reeled his lure in, struggling against the force pulling against him, "I-I think it's a big one!"

"Yeah yeah, Justin, and that old man in Cherrygrove Town caught a Gyarados once!" Ralph chuckled again, "Oh, and that boy actually DID take it down with a Shinx! Oh, and that one legend about the syrup-drunken gunslinger ninja? That totally exists!"

He was about to eat those words, as Justin finally reeled in… What appeared to be a piece of sirloin. Confused by this, the three fishermen peered over at Justin's treasure.

Just minutes later, a large creature attacked the bridge, slamming what appeared to be one of its limbs into where the fishermen were standing. I would like to say one thing before we move in on William's view of this: How come I don't get any steak?

William stared at this sight in surprise, as the creature emerged from the lake, with its blue, powerful limbs swinging around in a vigorous manner. The trainer noticed the monster's orange guard-like features on its body, as well as the weird fins it had: One across its back, and two on his head.

Swampert, the Mud Fish Pokémon. It can swim while towing a large ship. Its arms are hard as rock. With one swing, it can break a boulder into pieces.

Ming-Ming quickly lowered the temperature of the air around her, and in a split second, threw three different icy weapons, a sword, spear, and axe respectively, at the large monster.

The Swampert simply held out its hand, as the weapons themselves barely nicked its palm. It then resumed its rampage, its attack aiming for this time Ming-Ming herself.

"… Ming-Ming, you sure you want to go through with this?" William looked at the large Swampert swimming towards his young ice pokémon, "It's doesn't seem like you're that powerful, nor does it seem that thing's anywhere close to weak…"

Ming-Ming took this as an insult, glaring back at her owner with an extremely appalled look, and then back at the creature.

Just before Ming-Ming could fashion another weapon, a large bolt of lightning struck down upon the large blue creature, surprising everyone in its radius, including the now fleeing fishermen.

A second bolt struck down, this time in front of Ming-Ming, slightly blinding her, and making William shield his eyes to avoid the glare. When William slowly removed his guard, he saw that, in front of Ming-Ming, there was a large, lion-like pokémon, with clumps of golden fur on the top of its slate-colored body, more specifically the top of its hind legs, and its front feet. It also had a strange golden hood-style mane.

Ming-Ming snapped at the lion pokémon that arrived, obviously peeved at the fact that it's stealing her target.

The pokémon ignored her, as it noticed the fallen piece of sirloin. It charged it full of electricity, magnetizing it, and hovered it over to the creature, releasing the charge it gave the meat just before handing it over.

The Swampert devoured the meal in one mouthful, bellowed out a roar, and sank back into the lake, apparently satisfied with its snack.

Ming-Ming, of course, was still annoyed by this development, giving the heroic pokémon an angry glare. Instead of fearing her, however, it simply licked her on the cheek, making her more pissed off.

'This young lass… Is a pretty girl. I see you've raised her well…' William could have sworn that the slate-colored pokémon was talking to him, yet it would be a strange event, a pokémon actually knowing how to speak any language other than its own.

'Do not be alarmed,' the pokémon walked in front of William, as Ming-Ming dashed to her owner's side, still glaring at it, 'This is all a part of my ability, Foudre.'

Before William could even ask a question, the pokémon seem to know the question before the trainer could utter a word, 'My name… Is Viral. I'm looking forward to our next meeting, William and Ming-Ming. … And please take of Rydia, and I do not wish for Ming-Ming to be jealous of a certain fox I know…"

The pokémon disappeared with a powerful flash bang, leaving both William and Ming-Ming confused on what they have just met. As he scratched his head in confusion, a certain line played into his head, something he believed had something to do with power…

… Deep down inside everyone, there's an innate desire to live. These were the words that were carried within all trainers' hearts. When a pokémon and a human bond, it causes a chemical explosion of power within them, that the two apart could not achieve.

This line of monologue can only describe a certain awakening, an awakening of Dewdano's latent ability, its ability of…!

"Is that Overgrow?" Stephie cried out, looking at her Treecko glow in a green aura. Though it was in constant pain of trying to pick itself off the ground, that strong aura proved its unshakeable courage, looking at its opponent with a brave glare.

That should not affect Scyther's power, despite its ability, it's still a Treecko…, the young girl calculated in her thoughts, "Scyther, move in and strike with your U-turn!"

"… This could be a good time for…" Stephie clenched her fist, now with a newfound resolve, "Dewdano, please! Use Bullet Seed and succeed with using it!"

Dewdano summoned as much power as it could, closing its mouth and eyes, and gathered as much energy as its body would allow, even reaching into the deepest regions of its body, as the aura around it continued to grow.

Scyther moved in on its prey, its scythes curled into its body, but outwards just enough so it could clench down on its opponent when it pounced straight outwards at Dewdano. It appeared that, in seconds, Stephie would lose this gym battle…

… Just inches away from danger, Dewdano unleashed his attack, opening its mouth, while a flurry of golden seed-like energy pellets flew out at the Scyther's face, knocking off its balance, and knocking up to its feet.

"Now finish it with Pound!" Stephie commanded, as Dewdano leapt to its feet, and slammed the mantis pokémon with its large, shrub-like tail across the face, ensuring its victory, "It's my win, Bugsy!"

"… Looks like you've bested this young boy, Stephanie." Bugsy nodded, digging into his pocket, "Looks like you've earned the Hive Badge."

"… Wait, you're a boy?" Stephie suddenly felt strange, looking at Bugsy's feminine actions. … Wait, Bugsy's a dude? WHAT. No, seriously, someone please tell me, how in the world is THIS a boy? I'm going to be like this until Lesson 6, aren't I? That… That just doesn't make sense!


	6. Burning Passion

Lesson 6 - Burning Passion

And so… Hm. I really wanted my break, guys! I mean, after Lesson 5, this one just felt so… I dunno, you know? … Okay fine, I'll read it Pablo. Sheesh, a guy with a disembodied voice can't connect to the audience these days…

We rejoin our main protagonist walking to the beautiful city of Violet, with its buildings colored in a traditional shade of, well, Violet. Even the notable Pokémon Center was colored in a deeper shade of red than Goldenrod's.

By his side, was Ming-Ming, looking at the town with a prideful smirk, musing to herself about how weak her competition must be here.

While the trainer walked through the city, noticing the rural and traditional themes of the city itself, he noticed what appeared to be the aftermath of a battle between two beginning trainers, a boy in a blue jacket with flame details sown into it, and a girl wearing a blue jean dress.

"God you suck at Pokémon, seriously," said a young boy, with a pair of orange round-lensed sunglasses in his deep red hair, "Even a baby would know not to use a Fire type against a Water type. 'Specially a Water type like my Hayato!"

"B-But… Bunny-chan is better than that!" The person the boy was criticizing, a young girl with twin pigtails, yelled back, "He'll kick your ass up the street 'n back when we get stronger, we'll both show you!"

The two stared at each other, as their pokémon, a small crocodile-like pokémon on the boy's side, and an even smaller echidna-like pokémon on the girl's side, faced each other. The echidna-like pokémon appeared to have four red spots on its blue back, as it tiredly yawned, annoyed by its trainer's fiery personality.

"Hah-hah, yeah right! Just admit it, I grabbed the superior pokémon from that doc dude, and you picked the shitty one!" the boy put his sunglasses on teasingly, and rubbing his nose with his left index finger, "I'll become a number one Pokémon Trainer, with or without your help!"

"W-Well…" the girl held her fists to her face, hiding her nervous gaze, while she thought of a retort, "M-My sister's an uber awesome trainer! And at least I don't swear like you!"

Before the boy could make another point, the girl quickly grabbed her pokémon, and ran off, with her blue jean dress nearly revealing her undergarments.

"Eh-heh-heh…" The boy laughed, rubbing his nose again, "Hayato, we're gonna become the greatest of heroes, you 'n me! Whether it'd be to become Pokémon Rangers, Trainers, or whatever, we're gonna see heaven itself, right?"

His crocodile ignored his enthusiasm, choosing to play with its jaw instead. This riled the boy up, looking at the pokémon with an annoyed glare, "… Just go back to your poké ball…"

As he returned the pokémon, William walked over to the young boy, surprised by the events he just saw, "… What the hell did you do to that girl's pokémon?"

"Mm? Why do you care, mister? It's not like you're much of a trainer if you're visiting… Here." The boy's eye was caught on Ming-Ming, looking at her magnificently beautiful white fur. '… It's so pretty… But I can't tell him that, no way! If he's here in Violet City, he must be weak, right? That means I can easily beat him, and become an awesome trainer!'

"Um… Are you okay? Maybe you should go back to that Pokémon Center…" William backed up a bit, confused by the young boy's mannerisms.

"E-eh? Don't go!" the boy blurted out immediately, his face showing a panicked state, "Erm, I mean… Shouldn't we battle?" he nervously chuckled.

"… Sure, I guess…?" William was confused by the boy's sudden demand, "But don't kids like you need to go to the Pokémon Center, 'specially when you just got into a Pokémon batt-"

"Don't repeat yourself, I already gotcha an answer!" the boy rubbed his nose again with his left index finger, "I only used one of my pokémon, see? We're only going to battle a one-on-one match, and this pokémon's a doozy! That bitch of a pokémon YOU have isn't a match, 'specially with ugly fur like that!"

Ming-Ming was deeply offended by this, glaring at the young boy with a pissed-off look. Before the boy could even scream about her look, William returned her, and simply clutched Rydia's poké ball in his right hand. It'd be fine with that little delivery girl to use Rydia, right…? William thought, It's not like this kid's dangerous, is he?

"What? You're just gonna stand there, mister?" the boy crossed his arms, averting his gaze to a nearby tree, "'Snot like you could beat my ace 'n the hole, anyway, you piece of shit…"

… What kind of language does this boy know, goodness…, William sweatdropped, and sent out Rydia, as she rubbed against his leg in joy, 'There's no way this kid's serious…'

'Oh my goodness, that pokémon's SOO adorable!', the boy nearly squealed before he realized he was about to battle William. 'Oh yeah, that thing's my opponent's pokémon, I need to break down his resolve, yeah…', "Hmmph! Mister, that pokémon's such an overrated piece of crap! Take it back to where it belongs!"

Rydia was confused by the young boy's words, tilting her head in confusion. William simply sighed, "… Where is this 'ace 'n the hole' of yours, again?"

"… Oh yeah…" the boy put his hands over to the back of his head, sheepishly giggling and sweatdropping. He then pulled a silver whistle from out of his left jacket pocket, and blew into it.

As soon as he blew out a single note from it, a wily violet monkey-like pokémon hopped from one of the trees, landing into the field next to him and Rydia. As the monkey bounced on its hand-like tail, the boy quipped, "This is Hongo, my Aipom partner. Together, we'll be the greatest of Pokémon Rangers, aren't we?"

The monkey pokémon nodded cheerfully, all the while bouncing on its tail. "Y'see, a bastard like you who treats his pokémon like crap… Those are the kind of people who me and Hongo have to beat!"

"… Weren't you the one bashing a little girl who lost to you?" William was confused, "If anything, you should be ticked off at yourself."

As the trainer sighed, the boy realized his error. He then pulled Hongo towards him and huddled together, whispering amongst themselves. Eventually, the two emerged, Hongo running up to Rydia in a battle stance, and the boy with renewed confidence, "Eh-heh-heh… Well, you're faced against the powerful Kaiser Donald! I've always wished to become a hero, and when I saw that bolt of lightnin', I just KNEW I had to early from school early and become one! Whether it's being a trainer or not, a hero I shall be!"

"But that explains-"

"Quiet! I'm not done!" Donald then held out his arm, while Hongo grabbed it with its tail, smiling and giggling, "I can tell you're a jerk because you're not using your Glaceon, no… You want to cherry tap me by using that Eevee of yours! And both of those pokémon are shiny! How do I know you're not the type of prick that only catches shiny pokémon and abandon the others, huh? You are truly the worst!"

'… I wonder if he would be happy being forced to go on a journey like mine…', "Dude, if it pleases you, I'll battle you. Just… Stop it with the yelling."

Donald saw the trainer's nervous look, feeling satisfied by his acting. As Hongo leapt off his arm, he placed his sunglasses back on his head, and drew out a pair of red goggles, "With these on… There's no way I can lose! No one has been able to win these from me yet!"

"… Okay then." William walked a few feet away from Donald, making a small distance in between them, "This enough room for your pet monkey over there?"

"Of course! Hongo ain't gonna lose to no slutty fox-thing!" the young boy proclaimed, pointing his left index finger straight at William, "I'll be the one to take you down!"

'… Did he just steal that from a game?', William sighed. Rydia hopped in front of her master, prepared to face any type of ability Donald and Hongo knew.

"Both me and Hongo have a true resolve, y'know? To be the best Rangers, I taught Hongo the greatest of moves, like Shadow Ball!"

As the monkey pokémon charged dark energy into its hands, a bald, black gi-wearing man peered from behind a tree, looking at the two trainers battle. "It's just Kaiser over there, playing with a new friend…," he quietly muttered, sighing, "… But who is that trainer over there?"

As Hongo hurled the completed dark ball at Rydia, William noted, "… Rydia, what makes you so special?"

"Eh? You're talking to her now while Hongo's about to kick her ass? What's wrong with you?" Donald looked in confusion, as the Shadow Ball drew closer to Rydia.

"… Just dodge it." William silently thought to himself, as Rydia leapt over the large mass of energy, "You should be able to mimic that technique yourself, right? It doesn't look too difficult for you to learn."

"That can't be… THAT'S the boy she was given to…?" the monk gasped, careful not to reveal his identity, "I must stop this battle somehow…"

Rydia was confused by her master's request, looking back at him with a puzzled look, "Just do what Hongo did before, concentrate some dark energy into you, like, think of the energy around you a part of you, and bring it together…"

… He's treating Shadow Ball as if it were a simple move…, Donald looked at William's analytical skills in awe, It took me forever to find that TM, and he's already teaching that adorable thing Shadow Ball without a TM?, "Y-You can't possibly learn a TM move by just looking at it!"

As Rydia created her own mass of dark energy, she managed to smooth it into a round bubble, ready to be used for attack. "… Now let it fall on you."

"W-WHAT?" the monk nearly screamed, "Wh-what does he think he's doing?"

"Just fall? Huh?" Donald backed up, "Man you must be crazy!"

William chuckled, as the shadowy bubble fell on to Rydia, creating a large explosion, "Now try looking as cute as can be."

"Mm?" Donald then noticed William's plan: As the smoke cleared, Rydia's body came out the same as it did before, however… During the subsiding dust, Rydia's beautiful reveal looked even more charming, as she cutely made a 'Come Hither'-look at Hongo, making him blush profusely.

Such a trainer…, the monk nervously hid behind the tree, The Eevee already has bonded with that young master, and yet he's a mischievous brat like Kaiser… The monk quickly drew from his gi a small potato-like instrument, and played one bar from it, a silent, quiet bar.

As soon as he blew into the instrument, the wind suddenly stirred, gathering and spiraling around in front of William. Donald backed away, as the wind settled… Not without a large, white-haired monster standing in front of William, with what appeared to be in a menacing stance.

Before William could get a word in, the large monster, with its leaf-like fan appendages, swept William away with the wind, leaving a small twister behind. Even Rydia, who did not even get to see her master's leave, immediately was swept with the wind as well, leaving just Donald in the face of this large monster.


	7. Destiny and Fortune

Lesson 7 - Destiny and Fortune

"Wh-where'd that guy go?" Donald was left on the battlefield; his love struck monkey-like pokémon, Hongo, left confused as to where the object of his affection went off to.

"So Kaiser, your trouble's finally fallen into my favor…" the monk walked away from the tree he was hiding in before, proudly sighing, "It appears that you've discovered the boy I was trying to catch."

"Eh?" Donald turned around, returning Hongo into one of his poké balls, "Y-You're that guy, erm… That one guy who keeps telling me I'm mean to people, uh…"

Don't tell me he's forgotten my name again, the monk sighed, and coughed, clearing his breath, "Anyway, Kaiser, for once… Your mischievous ways helped me capture a certain pokémon my master desired."

"They did? Hold on!" Donald took off his goggles, "Are you sayin' you were using me as a lab rat? How can you call yourself a good guy if you're using such tricks?"

The monk looked at Donald's wild behavior, and sighed, … It appears that I'm not the best role model for this young fledging… "Why don't you go back to your, 'journey', as you have referred to it? I thought that lightning bolt was your call for adventure."

"… Sure it was!" Donald yelled back, clutching his red goggles, "But that guy…"

"You're feeling sorry for one of your opponents? … How surprising, Kaiser." the monk looked away from Donald, as the large silver-haired monster walked over to him, with its tree-like body giving an air of power.

"… Don't call me that." Donald placed his orange sunglasses back over his eyes, and threw his goggles at the large monster, "If that battle continued, that guy would've outdone me, I just know it!"

As the large monster caught the goggles in its green leafy fan appendages, the monk simply stared at Donald, surprised by his words, "… You've grown. Perhaps that lightning bolt really did signal a change within you."

"… Just give those goggles to him." Donald muttered, as he turned to the large building, "I'll become even stronger than before, and battle him for those goggles! It's my duty as a Pokémon Ranger to challenge him again!"

Does he not realize he's acting like a Pokémon Trainer instead…?, the monk sighed again, "… Take the goggles to the boy. I believe our master Li is waiting for us…?"

The monster nodded, generating another twister, and warped the goggles away. The two walked off, leaving Donald by himself, as the wind blew a chilly air.

"… I wonder how long it's been since that guy chastised me…" Donald shook his head, "N-No matter, I gotta become stronger and beat whoever that guy was!" He slapped his cheeks with his hands, as if he were trying to wake himself up.

He then heard the hurried footsteps of another trainer, one with a blue T-shirt, golden shorts, and a violet rat following him, dashing into the local gym. "… Yes…" Donald mused to himself, turning to the locating the boy was running to, "That's it! If I can defeat eight gym leaders, surely I'll be able to fight that guy later on! I bet he's already far ahead on his journey!" Donald dashed off, running to his new goal of defeating the Gym Leaders of Johto…

"… It appears this young man was struck with the blessing of Tsukuyomi…" an elderly man sat on a brown braided mat, sipping from what appeared to be a brown, ridged cup. He sighed, rubbing his long, gray beard, "In just a few days, he's already experienced so much, and matured, as well…"

He wore a violet gi, with a golden robe just above that, hung over his left shoulder. On his right shoulder, a black crow-like pokémon rested, its crest styled in appearance of a witch's hat.

The air felt thick with a mystic air, as the scent of sage lingered through the air. If one listened intently, they may hear the quiet creaking of the middle column inside the room, as the bells within the room rang with the soft wind.

The man sighed again with an easy breath, and lifted up to his feet, however not without struggling to gain balance. He hobbled over to the body in front of him, a dark-skinned teenager who wore a black jacket with blue lines around its ends, as well as one each across its sleeves. From there, he poked the poké balls on his belt one by one, careful not to touch his khaki shorts in the process.

This released out several pokémon, including: a small silver fox-like cub, a blue bat-like scorpion, a yellow weasel, and a blue fox-like kitten. The quartet of pokémon looked amongst themselves, as if it were the first time they saw each other in such a fashion. The blue kitten seemed to assume a leadership role, as she glared at the elderly man, appearing enraged over the fact that the teenager appeared collapsed.

"Your trainer's alright, don't worry…" the man chuckled at the blue pokémon, as she stuck her nose in the air, obviously peeved at the tone of the man. "I do believe you're not worthy of his potential."

This really got the blue kitten angry, sticking her tongue out. She then noticed how the yellow weasel tried to calm her down with a small spray of water, and rolled her eyes, annoyed at what she had to deal with.

"However… I do see you were given the blessing of Susano'O…" the man nodded, pulling his beard again, and looked over at the small silver cub, ignoring the blue one's prideful grin, "… Why did you choose such a man, young maiden?"

The young cub looked at the old man in confusion, unable to comprehend what he meant. She turned to the young teenager, walked over to his body, and tried waking him by pushing her body continuously into his own.

"It seems that the whole of you young children still have not discovered the missing shards of your memory…" As the young teenager stirred and groaned, the elderly man chuckled, "And it appears your chosen partner has awoke, shrine maiden…"

"'Shrine maiden' …? What are you-" the dark-skinned teenager noticed the jacket he was wearing from gazing at his right hand, while he scratched the back of his head with his left, "What the hell? I wasn't wearing this before…"

"That's because I put it on you," the elder seemed pleased by this, as the teenager lifted to his feet, "You WERE chosen by Tsukuyomi, I saw, so it felt like an obligation to support you in any way I can."

"'Obligation'? You feel 'obligated' to help a guy that has dealt with a strange delivery girl, a pyromaniac that set a whole town on fire, and even a weird lion-thing who's like… God or somethin'!" William threw his arm out at the elderly man, as Amamiya returned both herself and Hiruma, "If anything, you should feel 'obligated' to help me get back to my old life, than this… HELL I've been given suddenly!"

"… I thought you were given freedom to search for the truth." as soon as the elder said this, William's eyes lit up completely.

… Wait, that voice before… It said the same thing, didn't it? The "truth"…? William stepped back from the old man, and adjusted his body to face him, staring into his eyes, "… What do you know about me?"

"Kid…" he sighed, tugged his beard, and gave William a powerful look, one that gave a blunt air, "Your aura is one that's easily read. I can tell both your past, and predict what may happen in your future."

Before William could respond, the elder held up a finger, signaling that he was not finished with what he wished to say, "However… Do not ask about either subject, I believe your search is one that only you may complete by your ability alone."

"Then… What do you know of Ming-Ming, then?" William could only feel confused by the situation he was placed in. … Actually, he felt that this "search" was being grounded into his thought; as if it were something important he had to remember. However, he kept asking himself, "Why me?", questioning why of all people, he had to be the one "chosen" to be thrown into this mysterious journey.

"… Ming-Ming…?" the small blue kitten walked in front of the elder, beaming with a prideful smirk. He looked down to her, sighing, "She's nothing special in my eyes."

As Ming-Ming glared at the old man, obviously irritated by this fact, William quickly uttered, "What do you mean? You can't tell with your 'aura reading' powers or whatever that she's totally badass? She even saved my life!"

The blue kitten was surprised by William's quip, almost confused how he hyped her up. 'Hmmph, looks like my owner's getting brighter and brighter…,' She thought, making another prideful smirk.

"… You didn't even let me finish." the elderly man made a pouting look, as if he were offended by the trainer's brash nature, "Yes, I see her as nothing special, but you two, however, have obviously bonded with one another. It's as if the two of you were like that one green-haired swordsman and the blonde cook… You need each other."

William down at Ming-Ming, as she walked over to her owner's side, smiling with a devious look. He then turned to Rydia, noticing the way she looked at the old man with a confused look, "What about Rydia, then?"

"That's the name you've given her? I don't believe it means anything, really…" the elder scratched his beard, as the black crow on his shoulder gave off a big yawn, and leapt off his roost, hovering over the man, "What do you think of William, young maiden?"

The silver cub looked up at William, and smiled at him, as if she enjoyed being his pokémon. She then started rubbing his leg with her body, mewing.

"Krao, krao, krao… She's quite content with her jerkass slave driver…" the black crow mused, chuckling at the silver cub's innocent nature.

"I see, Krowley…" the elder allowed the bird to fly off from the room with a simple wave of his hand, "And to answer an impending question… He's rather intelligent, Krowley is."

William tried thinking of a response, but gave up on it, returning Rydia into her poké ball. He eventually asked, "May I ask, then, why are you withholding information about my memory?"

This is it! It appears that our main protagonist, William, is finally going to get some light on this mess! Soon, right in this lesson, while the old man here opens his mouth, we will have the secrets to this groundbreaking mystery! Hooray, just a few seconds, and he-

Holy crap a giant brown hawk-like pokémon smashed through the roof of the building, with rainbow hair! As it crashed through, the blue sky was revealed for both William and the elderly man. … Though I have never thought I had to say something like that in this whole series, ever.

But wait! While Ming-Ming summoning a tomahawk using her ice mastery, the old man has to reveal his secret, right? Well, instead, he was taken a gasp from this surprise attack, opting instead to look over above the hawk pokémon, and saw a young man with long, silver hair. He also wore a rather odd spaceman outfit, as he looked at the dark-skinned trainer's efforts to stop the giant hawk, all the while playing with a lock of his hair.

"I'm sorry, old man, but these were fabulous orders from my boss!" the silver-haired man put emphasis on the word 'fabulous', as he smiled deviously at William's efforts.

"Your boss?" William made an effort of trying to punch the hawk square on its left cheek; all the while the giant bird swung its left wing at William, forcing to block the attack with both his arms, "How the hell do you people keep finding me?"

"'You people'…? Such rude language," the silver-haired man curiously wagged his finger, swirling it as if he were controlling the giant bird pokémon, "I have a job to do, little boy, and nothing will interrupt me!" He giggled at the end of his exclamation with a teasing connotation.

The elderly man watched William's efforts, seeing the trainer hopped back from a powerful peck attack. The boy also asked Ming-Ming for a sword, which she created easily and tossed over to her owner, confused about what his plan was.

Eventually, when William swung his sword to strike the giant bird, as the same bird tried to peck at the trainer again, the wind suddenly blew across the room, as a pair of red-lensed goggles were now hung around William's neck.

At this moment, something stirred within the trainer, as if he realized a huge flaw with what he was doing. Instead of continuing his attack on the bird, he rolled to his right, while the giant hawk pokémon crashed into a wall, from its inability to turn because of its huge bulk. He dropped the icy sword he held, stood straight up, and said, "… Just do your job, weird grunt."

The old man was surprised by William's sudden turn in character, noticing the way he looked up at the silver-haired man, as if he were facing fate itself. He glanced over at Ming-Ming, surprised and even irritated by William's sudden change of plans. She walked to her owner, glaring into his eyes.

William had no choice but to ignore Ming-Ming, as he faced the silver-haired grunt head on, just as the large bird managed to turn around after its crash. His fists were clenched, as he stood in the center of the room, prepared for anything that would be thrown at him.

"Oh? The little trainer and his kitty cat are ready for what I'm about to do?" the silver-haired man giggled like a young schoolgirl, with his effeminate charms shining through, "It's more fun to torture you and cause you pain, though. I HATE obedient clients!"

William had nothing to say, he simply returned Ming-Ming, and held his head down. He knew that, from this point on, he would have to solve his own personal mystery. Deep down inside him, from what he has heard from the people he has met… The town that was burned down to cinders, and even his meeting with that electric beast…. He felt that his priority should be remembering who he was…

The silver-haired man sighed, and returned his own bird pokémon with flick of his wrist, a poké ball at first visible in view from that flick, and after it returned the large pokémon, disappeared from view with another. He then pointed his finger at William, and giggled one last time, his attention fully directed at the trainer, "… Is this what you refer to as, 'héroïque'?" As soon as he said that, William… Disappeared. I can't describe it, seriously! He like, vanished with the light or something. … It was so weird and awesome; I just can't believe that happen- FINE, Pedro, I'll stop.

"… It's funny, young man," the elder mused, seeing the destroyed building he was in, "I believe I've met you before, yet you appear to carry an emblem similar to a distant region…"

The grunt leapt up, and fell into the same room as the elderly man, his hands inside his pockets. He waltzed over to him, and as soon as he met his face, noticing his baldhead and long beard, he mused, "I've burned away that, you sorry ol' man. As of now, I'll be here out known as… 'Luna'."


	8. Sinking Darkness

Lesson 8 - Sinking Darkness

"… This is… The third time we have met, is this correct… William?" A voice spoke, with a rather deep and encoded tone, as if it were filtered through a speech compressor. The carrier of this voice could not be seen, as well as… Hold on, where IS this scene?

It appeared as if… our main protagonist was floating through darkness itself, or even just free falling. He felt no sensation of falling however; it felt as if he were… He did not have the words to explain it in his head, he was… Simply on his back, his arms and legs spread out, seeing nothing around him. "… I don't remember hearing a voice like yours…" He answered, trying to lift himself out, but his arms did not respond to him, "… It would be easier to see your face, though."

"That… I cannot do." The voice said, as with a flash of light, the young trainer now saw before him… Three poké balls, "I believe you have befriended a small trio of pokémon, correct? I was under the impression that you disliked these creatures, and yet…"

"… They're… My allies, that's all." William said, trying to at least move his fingers, but alas, failing at getting a feeling for them, "Hold on, 'three'? What about-"

"Ming-Ming? She's simply your pet, or have you still forgotten about her? … Such fallacy, believing that you could become 'friends' with Pokémon, as if you were a hero…"

"I never said either of those things." the trainer tried blinking, though he saw no change in his surroundings, only darkness, "… I want to protect Rydia, at least… Be worthy of protecting her."

"And what about Hiruma and Amamiya? … Are their importance simply, only for Rydia's sake?" The voice laughed a bit, making a thunderous sound in the pitch-black area.

"They can do whatever they like. … However, I'm sure they like being with me, or at least from what I know of them right now…" The trainer chuckled to himself.

"Did I… Have I said something that appealed to you, William?"

"Nah, it's not that…" the trainer muttered to himself, feeling as if he were smiling, "It's just, well… Despite how I wish to protect Rydia, I…"

The voice chuckled, "… You waver from your path. You wish to protect such a young girl? Do it, and dare not break from what you strive for. Only with strength, can you endure suffering, and reach out to your path…"

"Thanks, though… What about Suupuushan? Som-"

"-One told you about her, I believe…" a breeze could be heard, as the voice spoke again, "She is someone precious to you, similar to Ming-Ming. … It appears you have not met her, however…"

"Really now? Do you at least know what spec-"

"I do not." the voice interrupted, "At least, I do not wish for the tale to be spoiled to you. There is also a young… 'Maiden', I should say, that desires you…"

The trainer chuckled a bit, "… Who are you, anyway? It's not everyday I meet some 'dark entity' or anythin'."

"… You will meet me again, for the fourth time. Be wary of my words, William…" The voice chuckled again, as William felt his body fading, as well as the poké balls in front of him. Eventually, after he felt his whole body evaporate into simple molecules, he could have sworn he saw… A young girl's face, one of tan skin, and had rather sky blue eyes. She simply looked at him with a pouting look, yet he had not an idea of what her identity may be…

We move in on a glorious hotel room, with its walls painted in a dark gray, and padded with a burgundy carpet floor, decorated with its yellow rhombus pattern. A young girl in a black maid outfit tended to the room, dusting the gorgeous furniture in the room. Her red hair was softly lit under the candlelight of the room, as she busily did her job, her feather duster dancing along in her tan hand.

Under the white sheets of the feathery bed in the room, however, something appeared to stir. She turned around, seeing the sheets move and twist around, until a young man of dark skin jumped out of the covers, sighing a bit as he looked down at them, "… The hell was that…?"

"E-E-E-Egad, a pervert! Inside Mr. Sanada's room, as well!" the maid shouted, clutching her feather duster tightly, "Wh-Wh-Who are you?, and why are you here! Do you honestly believe I will take off my clothes for you and give you a striptease and even embrace your black body, you sick, twisted person!"

The person turned around, obviously still a tad sleepy. He opened his eyes slowly, with his black hair just barely noticeable in the light, "… Are you really that suspicious of me…?" He yawned, getting out of the bed, revealing his black jacket, and his blue T-shirt underneath. He also wore brown shorts, as he stood quite the amount of inches above the young maid, still cowering in fear.

"Y-Y-You… I-I'll show you for harming Rydia! And of course, you should be chastised for trying to get into that poor fox's pants!" She squealed, dropping her feather duster and dashing out of the room, leaving the person, alone in the dark.

The person sighed, looking for a light in the room, "… If that voice is really that chick, I swear she better be tryin' to put up a 'mask' or whatever…" He eventually fingered around a switch, flicked it, and saw the elegant displays in the room, one in particular depicting what appeared was a young woman casting a young man to the ground, with a young girl dressed in maiden-esque garbs falling with him. The setting contained a night's sky, brightly lit by the woman's body, under her being a rather empty field of dirt and dried trees.

The young girl herself had features similar to a small cat, with her large lime green cat-like ears with a dark blue tinge in their insides, as well as a long, lime green forked tail. The young man she appeared to be falling with wore a black robe, with a galaxy being filled in for its design.

In the case of the woman, she was wearing what appeared to be a traditional kimono, styled with various stars on it, as well as a large Sun-like object adorned in the center of the piece. Her left hand was drawn with various reds and oranges, showing off a rather "heated" energy she was using against the young man.

Everything else in the room, at least in the person's eyes, seemed rather fancy, '… I wonder how rich Mr. Sanada must be to afford such a room…' He chuckled at the thought, as someone knocked on the door behind him.

"M-Mr. Sanada…? We have a call from one of your maids that you are…?" the voice sounded as if it belonged to a woman, as it sounded now that she was trying to unlock the door.

The person coughed, quickly trying to figure out how to respond, "E-Erm, there is no need to come in. Can't a person like myself get some privacy around here?"

"O-Oh, yes sir! Right away, Mr. Sanada! I'll deliver your pickles post-haste, as well!" the person heard the woman's footsteps dash far off, sighing to himself, '… Pickles? What kind of guy orders pickles if he's this loaded…?' He shrugged.

He then remembered the voice's words, as his left hand reached for the bronze doorknob. He figured it would be for the best to at least check his Pokémon. At least, hope Ming-Ming was still on his belt. He checked each of his poké balls with his right hand, 'Rydia… Hiruma… Amamiya… Ming-Ming…' He had four, the exact amount he had before that… Teleportation he went through. He then looked down at his neck, realizing he still had the red-lensed goggles around his neck, just as his right hand felt a rather strange object in his right pocket.

He dug into it, fishing out what appeared to be a fiery stone, in the shape of a heart. "… I still had this thing?" He muttered to himself, placing it back in his pocket, figuring that later on, it would be of use to him. His main goal, at least at this moment, would be to at least figure out where he was.

He grabbed the bronze doorknob with his left hand, turning it, and was surprised by the outside, with the walls decorated with elegant designs of what he thought were all references to various deities. As he kept walking through the hallway, with the fluorescent lighting showing off the various works of artists, he made it to a flight of stairs, advancing through without a single question.

"Hmmph! You're late! And I thought you called yourself a gentleman!" A red-haired maid greeted, as the person walked down the stairs, "I-I can't believe you, making a girl like me wait so long!"

"H-Hold on!" The person waved his hands down, trying to calm the maid, "When was I supposed to chase after you?"

The maid sat in a green chair, with the room being in a dull shade of brown. She nudged the brown table she was sitting next to a bit, "You idiot, William, I can't believe this! First, you planned on making out with that yellow fox pokémon of yours, and then you want to have sex with that pet of yours, too! What kind of sick person are you!"

The trainer actually fiddled around with the idea that staying in the luxurious room would have been a better idea than trying to escape, feeling the intense stare from the maid, "N-Now settle down! When did I even think of tho- No, who ARE you in the first place!"

The maid flared her nostrils, as she stood up, and grumpily tore her outfit off, revealing that she wore a jean long-sleeved sailor outfit and also a red skirt underneath her maid garment, "The name's Ruby! … And you could quit flinching." She noticed William's arms were avoiding her gaze.

"… What kind of girl are you…?" He muttered, relaxing his arms, "I mean, just look at you, constantly riled up against me! What have I done to you, anyway!"

"Hmmph! You're the one pissed off at me!" Ruby turned around, flaring her nostrils again, "I don't have time to bother with complete perverts, y'know!"

"Can I at least get a few of my questions answered…?" William could not believe the situation he was in, 'At least, can I excuse her of being a candidate for the identity of that weird voice…?'

The red-haired girl turned around, flicking her hair, "'Long as you don't joke around that I'm like that tomboy mermaid chick." She crossed her arms, sitting back in her green chair.

"I won't, don't worry…" William sighed, 'That'd be the last thing I would even say, actually…' The trainer walked over to a nearby nightstand, "What… Do you know of Rydia?"

"Other than the fact that she's a sweet 'n kind Eevee, that was supposed to be given to an even sweeter trainer by the girl I've given her to, nothin'." Ruby nodded, satisfied by that answer. She then glared at William, "… Though I still don't trust you, you perv-"

"I know, I know, pervert, got it." The trainer interrupted with his hand, "… Waiit, did you gave her Rydia or somethin'?"

":… Sorta." she shrugged, "I just told her to hang on to this Eevee I found, that was all."

"… I see…" William nodded to himself, "Now who is this yellow fox? And Suupuushan, for that matter?"

"I knew it! You DO wanna fuck them! I shoulda known!" The red-haired girl leapt to her feet, as she quickly grabbed an orange poké ball from her waist, decorated with a yellow lightning bolt-esque shape, "I'll destroy you before you make any more sexual advances!"

"W-Wait, what are you even talkin' 'bout…?" William's eyes widen, noticing that what came out of the poké ball's flash was a rather large, brown bear, roaring to demonstrate its vitality and health.

Ursaring, the Hibernator Pokémon. Although it is a good climber, it prefers to snap trees with its forelegs and eat fallen Berries. With its ability to distinguish any aroma, it unfailingly finds all food buried deep underground.

"K-K-Kim-um will handle you! … R-Right Kim-um?" Ruby looked up at her bear pokémon, as it gave her a thumbs-up, "I-I gotta go, so… Adios!"

Before William could say a word, he was face-to-face against the large pokémon, not even being able to see the girl leave, 'D-Does this mean I seriously gotta fight a wild pokémon like this…?'

The Ursaring made a quick swipe at the trainer, as William immediately ducked to dodge the blow, hopping to his right to at least get away from the Normal-type's range. He saw that the Hibernator Pokémon had immense strength, with its single strike tearing into the wall with relative ease, 'Th-The hell am I facin'!'


	9. Now This Is What I Call Filler Number 9

Lesson 9 - Now This Is What I Call Filler 9

And we're back, I, the Narrator, shall again recite to you the tale of… Wait, what IS this series, again? I've seemed to have forgotten. It's been months since I even needed to tell even a thing, and yet… I feel somewhat nostalgic, as if I were MADE to narrate! Yes, I must narrate, it is my duty!

That is, I need to figure out what to narrate, first… Let's see here… A red-haired girl's Ursaring got defeated by a Buizel, a dark-skinned teenager ran around some city. His team got destroyed by a girly-looking person wearing a spacesuit, and he basically exposited most of the plot of this series.

What else to say, what else… Oh, the teenager's name was William, I remember now! He had uh… An Eevee, a Gligar, a Buizel, oh, and a Glaceon, too. They were all alternate colored, for some reason, even giving off a weird sparkle effect when they came out of their Poké Balls. Seriously, it's just so weird how that works, and yet… He hates his Pokémon, apparently. I don't know, I hardly remember the series now, I actually feel ashamed. Yet, I shall narrate, and be the best narrator any writer could hire!

So, William apparently collapsed in front of the gate in Canalave City. When he woke up, he found his "saviors", Kinsa and Miki. Kinsa is the fair-haired teenager, who wears a large green cloak, frameless glasses, an orange polo shirt, and deep green long pants. According to his friend Miki, he has the air of an old man ("No I don't. I just think of myself as a gentleman."). Miki, on the other hand, is a beautiful young lady with long violet hair, a black shirt with a heart in the center, plus her short lime green skirt would make any boy nosebleed in joy ("Don't make me sound attractive!").

"Well now, don't you think it's a bit customary to introduce yourself, William?" Kinsa said happily with an airy smile across his face.

William was sitting on the floor, and looked at both Miki and Kinsa's face. He noticed the use of mascara around Miki's eyes, as if she was trying to appear goth-like. He rubbed his face, mostly his cheek and lip area, against his arms, trying to curl his black arm hair back perpendicularly against his arm. "Heh. But don't you know my name already?" Before Kinsa could say a word, he went on, "The name's William. That's all you need to know. I'm 16 years old, and I hate pokémon."

"Wait?" exclaimed Kinsa, which made his glasses almost fall off. After pushing them back onto their rightful position on his face, he went on, "Pokémon are beautiful creatures! You can't just 'hate' them! They're friend-"

"Say one more friendship speech…" interrupted Miki, covering Kinsa's mouth with her hands. William could see that her nails were painted violet, with a five-leaved, lilac colored flower on all of them, "… And I will be forced to kick your ass." She turned towards William, with her eyes shining brightly with their gray tones. "Pokémon are invaluable creatures that could be used to have fun, and simplify our lives. It's like hating getting your nails done."

William stood up, and stared at Miki straight in the face. He felt rather annoyed; needing to explain about the reason he hated pokémon. "I just hate them, all right?" and with that, and swiftly kicked Rydia away, who was trotting towards William's leg.

Miki was flabbergasted. Even from her negative demeanor, she secretly cared for all creatures. Her gray eyes turned slightly feral, as she pounced towards William.

However, William quickly kissed her on the lips, and followed up with a pat on her back. Miki fell, completely short of hitting William, and crashed on the pokémon center's floor.

"Your pounces are a LOT slower than my friend's." William sighed, "Plus, you're less matured than her. How sad."

Kinsa's eyes lit up. This person is seriously talking trash around Miki? Does he have like iron balls or something, or is he an idiot? He thought, as his glasses started to slide off.

Once Miki got up, she giggled. "No one's actually got a kiss from me, and lived." she smiled, and snapped her fingers. A large, orange, black stripped dog crashed straight through the center's walls, with its fangs bearing. The collateral damage did not faze William, instead, he simply allowed Rydia to sit on his shoulder.

"Now who's going to pay for the damages, miss?" William sarcastically asked.

"Obviously Kinsa's gonna do it." Miki said, and Kinsa outwardly objected.

"But you ALWAYS break things when you send out Mustang! And I'm always the one who's paying for it!"

"That's the whole point!" Miki responded, with the same tone as her friend's. "If I had to spend my money, I would not afford to take beauty naps."

"… Sleep is free." William and Kinsa sweatdropped, as Miki flicked her hair in a charming manner, her left hand flowing through her beautiful mane.

"Now I'll show you the elegance of Pokémon Contests." she winked, which William sweatdropped again, and Rydia looked appalled by the fact that Miki seemed to be charming William.

"What's a 'Pokémon Contest?'?" William asked, having no idea what Miki was talking about, 'From what it sounds like, it's seems more of a flashier version of just battlin'…' He chuckled amidst his thoughts.

Kinsa whipped out a book from his green cloak, and started reading from it. The book itself was fairly large, and had a dusty brown color. "Pokémon Contests are a type of competition often contrasted with Pokémon battles and held in Contest Halls. Pokémon are judged on their condition and moves in two rounds, to determine which is the best of its category."

"… It's some kind of beauty contest?" William asked, now even more befuddled. Two idiots save me. 'One's a nerd, the other… Just plain slutty. The girl challenges me over what now?' His thoughts were racing, but eventually… He managed come across a conclusion. 'In order for me to keep exploring this region, I must beat her. I do not see any other reason to battle now…'

Kinsa, after noticing William's complete acknowledgement of the battle's challenge, stepped into the middle of the room, and put on a red bowtie, hidden also in his cloak. Once he fastened his tie, he cried out, "This is an unofficial Contest Battle! One on one match between William and Miki shall now begin!" He threw his left arm down, with his left hand open in a chopping position, to signal that the battle has now begun.

"Oh dammit! I didn't even switch Rydia out yet!" William swore, noticing his idiotic fox pokémon still on the 'battlefield', with her eyes cheery as usual. But just then, William hatched a plan. He put his hands into a T-position, and called for a timeout.

"What the hell? I didn't even let my Arcanine have at you!" Miki yelled proudly, as William whipped out his black PokéDex.

Arcanine, the Legendary Pokémon. Its proud and regal appearance has captured the hearts of people since long ago.

"Other than that, it IS okay for the trainer to actively participate in this battle, right?" William questioned, with a slight hint of deception.

"Uh… I guess." Miki was confused upon why anyone would ask a question like that, until she noticed William's ridiculous plan.

The black teen quickly set his hands into a shape that looked like a heart, and quickly kicked Rydia away, as if he was literally targeting the Arcanine. As he did this, he proudly cried the technique's name, which he called the, "Silver Bullet!"

Kinsa was completely dumbfounded. "Isn't that a complete parody of the move from Tokyo Mew Mew?"

As Rydia made a big slam against the Arcanine ("Mustang!") Fine, Mustang's head, William pulled a thumbs-up, and answered Kinsa's question with a "YES!"

Kinsa sweatdropped, but Miki took the answer the wrong way. He thinks he could actually defeat MY precious Mustang? Her thought screamed out, as she commanded a Heat Wave from Mustang.

As Mustang seemed to be gathering its breath, William's PokéDex cried out a description:

Heat Wave, the slightly inaccurate and very damaging Fire type move. The user exhales a heated breath on the foe to attack. It may also leave the target with a burn.

"… It's going to breathe stinky breath on Rydia?" William chuckled a bit, easily fomenting a scream from Miki. This is fun, not only am I able to actually FIGHT for once, I could eve- Waiit. When the hell did the PokéDex describe MOVES?

Mustang's attack was already charged, and let loose its breath. The wave instantly turned the temperature hotter, just like the Jonas Brothers' song. The amazing part is, Rydia mastered the art of William's rapid hand and finger work, which was apparent from Rydia's use of the Devil Bat Ghost to get behind Mustang, right on its back.

"Wow! Your shiny Eevee knows Quick Attack?" Miki exclaimed, with her gray eyes now shining on Rydia's skill.

"It's not a Quick Attack! It's the Devil Bat Ghost!" retaliated William, as he stormed straight at Mustang, and shuffled down a few jabs, followed by a quick left hook.

Mustang did not take the rapid-fire hits too well, and responded with a few claw strikes of its own. Fortunately, Rydia's Attract slowed the attacks down, as William gained the upper hand, and threw the large dog right out the same broken wall it came from, straight into the water.

"Aww man. I overdid it. At least it was a better sparring partner than Horus." William said, as Rydia stood up on his head. He started to rotate his right arm, then his left. "Hmm… Don't think I sprained anything. Sweet."

Kinsa's glasses finally fell off, and for good reason. Both the fair-haired boy and Miki's mouths were agape. They were completely struck in awe.

"Did he…" Kinsa began.

"Yes… Yes he did." Miki finished.

"Your strongest…"

"My only…"

"Will you two shut up and give me a hand?" William firmly asked, as he tried to pull Mustang back on land. There was a small crowd starting to notice the young black teen, the group confused by the whole event. He eventually got annoyed, and wanted to swing Mustang straight at them, as a weapon of sorts.

"Hey!" Kinsa cried out, and rushed towards William's aid.

"Sorry, already done." William pointed to Mustang, freshly reeled in, but appeared a little groggy from hitting the water. "I guess Fire types are weak to water. Makes sense."

"That's not what I wanted to talk to you about at all." Kinsa stated, and pulled out a gray stick from his cloak.

"… A stick. In your cloak. What DON'T you have in there?" William exclaimed, but Kinsa interrupted him before he made a rant.

"This is my new invention. I call it… The Lucky Cue!"

"… A billard cue." William sweatdropped.

"But! This one has a retractable shaft, see?" Kinsa demonstrated, as he pushed a small button, and the cue's shaft launched itself out like certain table's retractable legs. Then, while holding the button, he held the cue upwards, as the shaft fell back in.

However, William was far from pleased. "How would that help me?"

"Simple! It could be served for nearly anything! PLEASE, take it!" Kinsa bowed, as he offered the item.

William grabbed the cue with his left hand, and spun it around like a baton. "I suppose free stuff's not bad." William stated, and was slapped across his right cheek without warning.

As he landed onto the ground, he looked up, and saw that Miki was staring him down, as if she could fight him.

"What the hell did you do that for?" Willed cried out, holding his burning cheek with his right hand, and clutched the cue in his left.

"Duh. You're the one who's mean to his pokémon." Miki said, trying to seem innocent.

"I have you know, Rydia is the most loyal pokémon I have. I could beat it up, and it still stays by my side. It's amazing." Not even a tear emerged from William's face.

"Hm… I suppose we shouldn't, should we Kinsa?" Miki asked, with a sudden jump of personality.

"Yeah… We shouldn't say at all." Kinsa finished, which led William into confusion.

"… Say what?" William asked, as both him and Rydia tilted their heads in befuddlement.

"Oh? You did not know?" Miki cutely asked.

"No, I do not know."

"He knows not, what we know?" Kinsa asked Miki, playing along with the small game.

"Knows none, we know of knowledge, not yes, but no he knows not."

William started to get a little annoyed by this back and forth. "Get to the point."

"Oh. Well, there's this place called the Iron Island." Miki said with a singsong tone.

"Yes. And the only way to get there is to talk to the gym leader of the town." Kinsa said, also in a singsong tone.

"So… In order to train, I need to speak with the gym leader of this god-forsaken town?" William asked, and saw that both Miki and Kinsa nodded.

"Fine. So be it. I'll train at this Iron Island." William firmly stated, and with that, Rydia started to glow a complete white hue.

"What?" Kinsa gasped, with a complete shock as he saw Rydia.

"Is it... Can it be?" Miki exclaimed, as well.

During the course of a Pokémon's development, under certain circumstances specific to that Pokémon's species, it may evolve into a different Pokémon. The PokéDex stated, which William was still slightly surprised that the PokéDex was running on even in his pocket.

"What the…" noticed William, as he grabbed Rydia off his head, and saw that it truly was glowing white. "This is… Evolution?"

A short while later, Rydia's changes grew more apparent. Her body turned much curvier than before, and her tail grew longer, and became forked into two. Eventually, she evolved into something that appeared like a green carbuncle, with an orange gem on her forehead. She cutely blinked her eyes, which made William want to chuck her into the ocean.

Espeon, the Sun Pokémon. Its fur has the look and feel of velvet. The orb on its forehead glows when it uses psychic power.

"Heh. It looks kinda cute, don't you think?"

Miki and Kinsa smiled happily, as the Sun itself was looming above them, as the trio became the most odd of acquaintances.


End file.
